Road to Dawn
by RazzldHearts
Summary: "I walk the Road to Dawn." This is Riku's story, from his first steps on this new road to reconnecting with his dear friends, Sora and Kairi. But he's not alone- he has a small mouse-king and a strange girl full of smiles walking the path with him. Eventual Riku/OC. Rating may change in future chapters.
1. After the End

**So it begins! Hope everyone enjoys reading as much as I enjoy writing it!**

 **I know there are a few parts that may seem a little vague, but fear not! All will be explained in time. Let me know what you think!**

 **Disclaimer: I...don't...own Riku...or Kingdom Hearts... -_-**

 **~.~.~.~.~.~.~**

"DiZ, why don't you have him help?" A calm voice echoed around the gardens of the run-down mansion. Both the cloaked man and young silver haired boy looked around.

"Of course. Should have known they wouldn't have made it all the way here without _your_ assistance." The cloaked figure, known as DiZ said as he tried to find the source.

"He wants to help his friend, just as you need him revived. Your end goal is ultimately the same." The voice said, in a very logical, lazy tone. "I will have one of my apprentices return to the mansion."

"Don't decide things on your own, witch." Diz grumbled and turned back to face the teen. He seemed to barely be standing.

"You should have him rest. Riku was in Castle Oblivion longer than Sora. It's a miracle his mind wasn't completely shattered." The calm voice said. Riku was indeed conscious but he didn't seem able to completely comprehend what was going on anymore. The poor boy had been awake since entering the castle, which was in fact many days ago. He had fought and ran over nearly every inch of the basements and lower levels of the castle, all while enduring having his mind and heart torn between light and dark and facing the Seeker of Darkness. DiZ sighed and shook his head in exasperation. A laugh came from the voice, echoing from the skies.

"Rest today. You all need it. For tomorrow, your real trials will begin."

DiZ glanced up at the sky and narrowed his eye. After a moment, he sighed, nodded and walked towards the boy. As he wrapped an arm around the boy to guide him into the mansion a small portal opened in the shadows, and a hooded figure stepped through. It watched as the two made their way into the building, a few moments later the infamous King Mickey came running through the garden and followed after them.

"I still have many things coming in for you to do…But please, do what you can to help them. That boy has a long way to go, and Sora _must_ be revived." The voice from earlier spoke, but it was softer, quieter, so only the hooded being could here. The petite person smiled and looked on with curious, bright hazel eyes.

"Of course, Witch Thera."

Riku groaned and slowly opened his eyes. His mind felt like molasses as he tried to remember where he was. He winced when the bright warm light of the sun began to rise over the windowsill and past the curtain, blinding him. A sharp pain passed through his head and he let out another groan, rolling onto his side away from the bright.

Slowly, he began piecing together what he could. There was a castle…a King was there…a goofy, smiling boy he felt he should know very, very well… He was fighting…who was it again? He rubbed at his eyes in frustration at how spotty his memory was. He vaguely recalled a girl with blonde hair and a sad familiar smile.

"Awake already? That's some resolve you must have." A light amused voice broke through his thoughts and he turned back to the open window, where the voice came from. A girl looking to be around his age was leaning against the window sill, watching him with a smile on her lips. Her eyes were shielded by an amethyst hood.

His eyes widened when a black hooded figure took her place for an instant. He sat up straight in shock, as he stared at the figure he felt memories begin flooding back to him. "Sora!" he threw back the covers and tried to stand, only to fall back onto the bed when his legs refused to support him.

"You shouldn't be getting up yet. It's only been a few hours since you arrived." The girl's voice broke through his panic and he turned back around with a glare. The black cloaked figure was gone now and only the girl remained, still leaning on the sill with a smile. "You really should just lay back down."

"Yeah right, like that's going to happen." He said and tried to stand again. He heard a giggle behind him but didn't bother turning around again.

"If you insist on getting up… you should at least put on some clothes." Riku blinked a few times and looked down, discovering he only had his boxers on. He felt his eye twitch and his face heat up when he heard more giggles and quickly looked around the room. His now clean clothes were folded neatly atop the nightstand by his bed. He glared at the innocent garments before grabbing his pants and shoving them on. He barely managed to keep his balance when he stood to pull them up over his hips.

"You could've said something sooner." He said and weakly shrugged into his vest.

"How was I to know you were going to try and get up? Normal people who've gone through what you have wouldn't be stupid enough to get up yet." She replied with that same light tone of voice. That carefree attitude that seemed so similar to a certain spikey haired idiot was starting to tick him off a little. He narrowed his bleary eyes on the stubborn straps on his vest. After fumbling with them for another moment he just gave up.

He winced and stood, determined not to fall this time. And he succeeded…sort of. He leaned heavily on the night table before moving towards the door.

"You really shouldn't be doing that…"

"Don't care." He responded without missing a beat. His hands gripped the wall as he slowly got to the door. With his back to her, he missed her grin soften into a small hopeful smile and her turning to look at the window.

"It's finally dawn..." A soft breeze blew against his back and rustled his hair. He paused when he noted the scent of magic and slowly turned to glance over his shoulder. The curtains swayed with the breeze, but there was no one there. The mysterious girl was gone.

' _Was she really there to begin with?'_ After the events at the Castle and how spotty his memory was, he still felt as though his mind were unraveling. His legs shook and he groaned as pain shot from his left side where he knew a dark bruise was growing bigger all the way down his leg. _'Damnit …Sora…Kairi….'_ He had work to do, otherwise he'd never get to see them again…

He took a deep breath and continued out of the room, intent on finding answers.

Riku sighed, closing his eyes as Mickey fretted around him. He hadn't been counting on this. While the character DiZ sat in a large chair on the other side of the table Mickey was running in and out of the library, bringing him any potions he could find in the crumbling building. Riku leaned his head on one of his hands and submitted himself to the attention while DiZ filled him in on why he was so banged up.

Holograms were set out on the large table, showing an image of the girl responsible for his and Sora's state, as well as all those connected through Sora. It showed images of creatures he was all too familiar with as well as ones never seen before- nobodies. He felt like he was getting a crash course in recent events. His memories from the time he spent in the castle were falling back into place with each new thing DiZ mentioned. As they did, he couldn't believe he had such difficulty remembering.

He tapped the closest one that showed a black hooded figure absent-mindedly. The exact same cloak that was draped over the back of his chair, and that Mickey was currently wearing. Speaking of which…

Mickey nudged at him when he brought a potion back to make sure he was paying attention. Perhaps he was better off just sleeping a little longer. There was a knock on the library's door and DiZ finally stopped talking.

"It seems my last guest has arrived." He stood and slowly walked around the table towards the door.

"Someone else is coming?" Riku asked and looked to Mickey, who looked up at him just as confused and shrugged. They both turned back to the door just as DiZ opened it.

"Thank you for coming. I appreciate any help the Witch can offer." He said and stood to the side.

"Thank you for having me."

Riku's eyes widened and he tried to stand up, forgetting that his legs currently refused to work and almost fell over. He hissed and leaned against the table as Mickey turned to look at him with a worried frown.

"Riku! Why'd ya do that? You shouldn't be movin around so much." He said while scrambling to try another healing spell. Riku didn't respond, he was staring at the figure who just passed through the door and was now looking back at him.

"You-" It was the girl that was in his room earlier. At least seeing her here now meant he wasn't going crazy…yet. Her parted lips closed and turned into a smile. She lifted a hand and pulled her hood off, allowing a cascade of auburn hair to tumble out over her shoulder. Bright, big hazel eyes met his.

"My name is Melody. It's nice to meet you." She said, ignoring his stupefied expression. "I hope we can all work well together in the future." She tilted her head to the side and smiled at the two. Her voice was as soft and light as it had been earlier, she didn't seem phased at all. Somehow the way she spoke though made it seem practiced, as if she had said it many times before.

"It's nice to meet you Melody, I'm Mickey! And this is Riku." Mickey replied and waved to Riku. Riku glanced down at the mouse and then back up at Melody and nodded once in greeting. Melody giggled and knelt, reaching out to shake the King's hand with both of hers.

"King Mickey, what an honor!" She spoke earnestly and with slight awe. "I've heard so much about you! You're quite the busy King, aren't you?" She added with a small laugh.

Mickey rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment as he responded with a smile. DiZ walked back over to his chair while the two became acquainted. Riku eased back into his own chair, watching the two. She asked something about the King's travels and Mickey got quite animated about it, though Riku failed to hear what the question was. He stared intently at the girl as she listened, apparently enraptured by the mouse's words.

Absently he noticed the charm holding the mass of dark hair in its ponytail was a small multi-colored wayfinder, decorated with blue beads. The charm reminded him of days spent on a small island, in what seemed like such a small, small world. He frowned at the memory.

When he refocused on her face, Melody was looking straight at him. Her soft eyes met his sharp turquoise ones and he felt like he couldn't look away. What was up with this girl? Hanging around his room, disappearing and then reappearing here out of the blue. And her warm presence seemed to fill any empty space in the room, nearly smothering him. He stared right back at her, not wanting to be the first to back down.

Mickey was still talking and Melody closed her eyes, smiling at Riku before turning her full attention back to the small King. Riku just blinked and stared at her in confusion.

So what the hell was that?

Several hours later Riku was back in his room, sitting on his bed with a scowl firmly etched into his features. He was not happy- not in the slightest. If he didn't know any better he'd swear he had just been assigned a babysitter.

DiZ was currently in the process of having Sora and the others moved to the mansion. Namine had already made the move and was preparing things for when they finally got Sora there. Riku wasn't that great with magic, and while he was certainly more tech-savvy than Sora, he was no technician. He couldn't really help with the move. The mansion was located in a world in a seemingly forgotten corner of the vast reaches of space, heartless were few and far between. The barrier erected around the castle was more than enough to keep out what few problems arose so they didn't need him there defending the grounds.

DiZ and Mickey had concluded that the best way Riku could help would be to divert the attentions of the Organization as well as any heartless during the transition. Whether it was interfering with their plans or simply taking a chunk out of their lesser members; if it turned their eyes away from the mansion's world- Twilight Town, it should be done. This was fine with Riku. Fighting was one of the few things he was good at and if it helped his best friend, he would do anything.

Even if it meant allowing a strange tiny girl full of smiles to be his backup. That didn't mean he had to happy about it though. And they had asked her to keep _him_ out of trouble! Right in front of him- no subtlety whatsoever! He had practically fallen out of his chair when they asked her. And then when she had answered so seriously that she would, he felt like an anvil was dropped on his head. Any protests he had fell on deaf ears after that. He felt like a three-year-old again!

He sighed and fell over on his bed. He hadn't done much in the few hours he'd been awake but he felt like he'd just run three marathons in a row. Mickey had found him many potions, but some wounds were just too deep to heal with a plain old potion. Unfortunately magic was difficult to control in this world and it was sparsely used, if at all. If he wanted a higher grade healant, he'd have to go into the town beyond the woods. That just wasn't possible for him right now. His legs wouldn't last that long.

"Yikes, you look horrible." And there was that carefree voice again.

"Thanks 'cus I feel like a barrel of rainbows." Riku grumbled sarcastically without moving. He heard Melody giggle and move towards his bed. "Aren't you supposed to knock before entering someone else's room?" He said, he felt the foot of the bed dip and could only assume she had sat down.

"Oh, is that how it works?" She asked innocently. Riku groaned- little demon girl.

"Go away." He didn't want this strange girl around anymore, she was making his head hurt. Melody furrowed her brow and frowned at his back.

"You don't really like me, do you?" She said softly. Riku rolled his eyes, not that Melody could see.

"I don't know you enough to form any opinion of you. As far as I'm concerned, you're just an acquaintance of DiZ." He said with a tone of finality and closed his eyes. He tried focusing on his breathing and slowing it down so she would think he was falling asleep.

"Oh…ok…" Melody replied, eyeing him closely. "I'll just talk to you later then…" she tried, but Riku didn't respond. She pulled the blanket up over his shoulders and moved to the door. She glanced over her shoulder once more before closing the door and leaving him to rest in peace.

"Melody! Wait up a sec!" Melody stopped and turned, looking back to see the small King running out of the front doors towards her. She smiled, though it didn't really meet her eyes as he came up to her. "Please just give Riku some time. He doesn't really warm up to others right away." Melody's eyes widened before softening as the King defended his friend. "He's had it pretty rough lately, he just…doesn't really know how to trust people anymore. But he's a good guy once you get to know him."

She knelt down so she could face him properly. "You're a really good friend to him. Thank you so much your Majesty." Her hazel eyes shown with appreciation. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind." She stood and turned back to the gate. She took a few steps and paused, turning to look over her shoulder. "After all, this is only the beginning!" She smiled and jogged past the gate, heading towards town with one goal in mind.

Melody hummed as she walked around the market of Twilight Town. Her hazel eyes scanned each item at the shop she was currently at. When she didn't see the particular item she was on the hunt for she thanked the owner and moved on to the next shop.

Someone at an accessory shop called out to her, trying to entice her with a necklace of some kind. Melody glanced at the pretty accessory but politely declined and continued on to another specialty shop. She stopped with the crowd as the tram came lazily around the corner. She watched herself in the trams windows as it passed.

Long, dark auburn hair was pulled into a messy ponytail that was a little to the left of her head. The wayfinder charm that she had worked on for so many years danced between the loose curling locks. Several stubborn strands fell over her shoulder and framed a heart-shaped face along with her bangs. Vibrant hazel eyes, currently with a bit more green than usual, stared back at her. Her petite frame was clad in her usual uniform with the Witch's insignia on the shirt and pouch attached to her belt. The lilac and gray colors, accented with turquoise that made up the uniform complimented her lightly tanned skin nice enough. But… even to her, she looked a little sad and worn.

The train passed and people began walking again, pulling the girl out of the self-criticizing spiral she was about to fall down.

She had honestly been really excited when she'd first been asked to partner with Riku. After years of traveling and working alone, Melody was so happy to finally have someone with her. But…it looked like her new partner would rather be going solo.

There was a small chirp from her hood as she walked up the hill to the next shop. She blinked and looked over her shoulder with a small smile. "Hey there, Valifor. Did you have a good nap?" She asked, scratching the small strange creature that climbed onto her shoulder. He was still a young wind spirit, looking mostly like a cat. However, it had red and gold feathers lining its ears and tail, and its wings were just starting to grow in, feathers lining his front legs. The creature yawned and chirped again, nuzzling her cheek as they walked and settled against her neck.

She sighed, the smile fading again. "It looks like we're still not wanted, little guy." The little creature mewed sadly before purring and nuzzling her cheek in comfort. She paused and glanced through the next shop's items, and asked the shopkeeper about the type of item she was after. A moment later she looked down and walked away. After a few steps up the hill to the next shop she groaned and rubbed her head in frustration.

"Uhhhhg! Why doesn't anyone have it!" She half yelled, causing a few people passing by to give her weird looks. "I gotta find something!"

Valifor mewed and nudged at her to get her attention. He hopped off her shoulder and stretched out his winged limbs, gliding over to a window ledge. He pawed at a poster and turned back to her, his big dark gold eyes watching her. Melody raised an eyebrow and walked over.

"What'd you find Valifor?" She asked curiously and read over the poster. Her lips turned up into a big smile and her eyes glittered with excitement. "This is it Valifor! This is what we're looking for!" A small tournament was currently being held in the sandlot, to promote some larger Fighting-Struggle something -or-other that was coming up in a few months. But that wasn't what was important. What was important was the first-place prize. Her eyes burned with determination. And no matter what, she was getting that prize.

Riku sighed and rolled over in his sleep. However he rolled onto the large, now very painful bruise on his side. His eyes snapped opened and he hissed, moving onto his back. He panted a few times as the pain slowly spread over his chest and stomach before ebbing away into a dull throb.

The room was dark now, the only light came from the waning moon shining through the thin curtains. He felt comfortable in the silent, cool space, which made him frown a little. Despite not wanting to be ruled by it anymore, it seemed he was still more comfortable in dark places than light ones. He looked away from the moon and noticed something new sitting on his nightstand.

It was a flask, the body of it about the size of an apple. A soft blue green liquid glowed while small star shaped objects floating within gave off a warm amber hue. A silver label faced forward, the elegant words interrupting the glow. Riku reached for it, wincing as his muscles protested at being stretched out so much. He let out a sigh and pulled it close to his face. His turquoise eyes squinted in the dark before widening as he read what it said.

He slowly sat up in shock and looked at it again, making sure he read it right. It was an elixir, but not just any old elixir. It was a specially crafted elixir that was mixed with a Curaga spell and brewed with star seeds, which were as rare as paopu fruits. These seeds increased the body's natural ability to heal and mental functions (which made one's magic stronger and easier to pick up). These brews were only made by the finest crafters, usually from their best ingredients. He had only heard about them once from Mickey, which was a few days ago when they were resting in the castle.

"Go ahead, Riku! Drink up!" Speak of the mouse. Riku looked up at the door where Mickey had just entered from. Riku glanced down at the bottle, then back up at his friend.

"Are you sure? This stuff is hard to come by, shouldn't you save it?" He asked, not wanting to waste such a rarity. Mickey smiled and nodded.

"We got it just for you! So be sure to drink every last drop, ok?" Mickey said reassuringly and placed his hands on the bed. Riku nodded and uncorked the flask before bringing it to his lips.

With a deep breath he tilted the flask, swallowing the warm, sweet liquid. He shivered as he felt the heat spread across his body as the concoction slowly slid down his achy throat. His body felt like it grew lighter and as the last few drops touched his tongue he could already feel the pain ebbing from his side and strength returning to his arms and legs. He let out a sigh as he felt his energy level rise.

"Thanks a lot Mickey. I know these things aren't easy to come by." Riku said. He noted some deep scratches on his right arm already stitched up and now fading away. Guess he wouldn't be stuck here as long as he thought.

"You should thank Melody, she's the one that went out to find it." He said with a glint in his eye as he saw surprise cross the teen's face.

"What? She did? How?" He asked in shock.

"Apparently there was a small tournament goin' on in town today and first prize was a free request from this world's only moogle." Riku's eyes widened and he looked down at the bottle. Even if she had won a request, it must have taken a lot of persuading to get the little moogle to part with star seeds for free.

His grip tightened on the bottle. He thought back to how cold he'd been to her that afternoon and winced. Riku wasn't normally that mean to people, aside from when he became possessed by the darkness. His eyes drooped a little. "Why would she do this?"

Mickey looked at him for a long moment before turning his gaze to the door. He appeared to be thinking over what to say.

"I think it's just part of who she is. I've seen her once before, and heard about her through my old master, but today was the first time we met face to face." He started. "She seems like the type of person that helps people in need, no matter who they are or how they treat her. But I guess you don't get to be an apprentice to the Celestial Witch for being anything less." Riku looked at Mickey with confusion.

"Celestial Witch?"

Mickey looked a little distant. "The Witch that watches over the passages between worlds, time and space. It's actually thanks to her that we have the Gummi ships and that people in my world have learned to utilize light to keep the darkness there in check." He continued on, looking thoughtful. "It's impossible for the witch to leave her home world though. That's why she has apprentices that she sends out when people begin abusing their powers and knowledge. It's all about keeping the worlds in balance." He paused and Riku didn't know how to respond. He couldn't believe someone with so much power actually existed. "It must get lonely, goin to all those worlds by yourself."

Riku blinked and turned away from the bottle still in his hands to look over at the king. Mickey turned to look at Riku with a smile. "I think you should apologize, ok Riku?"

Riku nodded in reluctant agreement. Mickey backed up as Riku swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood. There was no pain, no wincing. He could barely believe he had so much trouble that morning. His body felt so light, moving with ease.

He was, without a doubt, now indebted to this girl.

He and Mickey both looked around the entire mansion then, in search of Melody. They met back up between the base of the staircases.

"Did you find anything?" Mickey asked, jogging up to Riku. Riku shook his head and looked down in thought. That only left the garden in front and the basement, which was currently off limits.

"Why don't you go ask DiZ if he saw Melody anywhere near the basement? I'll go check in the front." Mickey nodded and ran off to find the mansion's master while Riku turned towards the front doors. He ever so gently pushed on one of the doors that looked like they could fall off at the slightest gust of wind.

The front gardens at one time must have been quite beautiful. Remnants of statues lined the path to the large gate, which was currently shut tight. The paths were overgrown by moss, and ivy climbed the walls, twisting around branches and broken bits of marble and brick. From the path, he glanced between the statues and bushes until he finally saw a purple clad person leaning over the arm of a bench underneath one of the only trees within the walls.

"Jeez, are you really this hopeless?" He said, shaking his head as he walked up to her. Melody had her arms crossed on the arm of the bench, pillowing her head. Some stray strands of dark auburn hair fell across her neck and face. He caught site of something red on her cheek and leaned down. He cautiously swept the wavy strands from her face to see what it was.

A thin scratch starting under her left eye ran down over cheek, ending just below her lip. In the pale light of the moon he could also see some dirt on her forehead and chin. Now he felt a little worse. He knew without having to ask that she received those injuries from acquiring that elixir for him. Riku stared at her peaceful form for a moment before sighing.

' _Please, don't wake up.'_ he thought, not wanting to think about what she may do if she did now. Riku moved an arm under her knees and the other around her shoulders. After making sure her head was leaning on his shoulder he picked her up, vaguely surprised at how easy it was. They were about the same height, so he had been expecting her to weigh more, but his arms and back didn't feel strained at all. Maybe that also had something to do with that elixir…

He maneuvered back through the bushes to the broken path and headed up to the mansion. After hearing the resounding thud of the doors closing behind him, Riku paused. A thought came to mind as he looked at the double staircase. _'Where's her room again?'_

Melody yawned and stretched, rolling onto her back as she did. Blinking the sleep from her eyes, she stared up at the unfamiliar ceiling as her brain tried to recall where she was. She could have sworn she had been sitting on a bench in the garden, enjoying the twilight sky turning more dusk as night approached. Melody slowly sat up and squinted to look around the dark room. This looked like that silver-haired boy's room. She froze and looked around closer with wide, nervous eyes until she spotted said boy.

Riku was sitting on the floor just to the right of the window, leaning against the wall. His head was leaning forward, chin resting against his chest which slowly rose and fell in slumber. She couldn't help smiling a little. So, he really was a nice guy- just a little awkward and socially inept.

The light from the moon glinted off some glass, catching her eye. A familiar empty bottle was sitting on the floor next to him. She was happy to see it was empty this time. She looked back up at the teen, and noted a few goosebumps on his arms. She grabbed the blanket she had been curled up under and quietly stood.

"No wonder you were so banged up." She mumbled and knelt, laying the blanket over his legs. "You need to take better care of yourself…" Just as she was pulling it over his shoulder a hand shot out and grabbed her wrist. Melody let out a yelp in shock. Riku mumbled something under his breath and raised his head, looking at her with sharp eyes.

"Sorry," Melody whispered as they stared each other down. "I didn't mean to startle you…" Riku stared at her, seeming confused by her presence. "Uhm…Could you let go?" She asked meekly and flexed her fingers a few times. The movement drew his attention and looked down. He seemed surprised as he dropped her hand and rubbed at his eyes.

"What are you doing?" He asked her.

"You…uhm…Looked cold?" Melody said as though she were asking. He raised an eyebrow and looked down at the blanket.

"Oh…Thanks." Melody stood and immediately backed up. He raised an eyebrow at her strange behavior. Riku stretched out his arms and rubbed his sore neck, choosing not to comment.

"Oh, sure. You're welcome." She said and smiled.

"For this too." Riku added. Melody turned in confusion to see what he was talking about. He was holding up the empty elixir flask and glancing away from her. She giggled when his face began to turn a little pink.

"I'm glad it helped. Although, I don't think it'll have much effect on a stiff neck." She said, noting he rubbed it again.

"It's alright." He said and stood. He glanced at her only briefly before looking out the window. "I'm still grateful…for...the elixir." He awkwardly stumbled over the words, determined not to look at her as he did. Melody beamed, her eyes glowing at how cute he was being.

"I'm guessing you're the one that brought me inside?" She asked, linking her arms behind her back. Riku's eyes drooped a little and he nodded, getting redder. "Thank you. Guess I owe you one now." Riku's eyes snapped open and he turned to look at her as if she were crazy. "I'm sorry I was teasing you yesterday. I should have considered how you were feeling."

She stepped a little closer and held out her right hand. "From now on, let's do our best together, ok?" Riku stared at her outstretched hand and then back up at its owner. Melody kept smiling, hoping she was coming across as reassuring. After what felt like hours, a smirk worked its way over Riku's face. He raised his hand and grasped hers firmly.

He hadn't really apologized. She hadn't explained what her purpose was for following him. They hardly knew anything about one another. But they were going to need each other on this journey. And that's all either of them needed right now.

"They're just children, your Majesty. Do you really have so much faith in them?" The tall man said from the desk in the library. Mickey looked out the large window for a few long moments.

Down below, he could see Melody pulling RIku along as he shrugged on his black coat. She had a playful pout on her lips as she said something to him. Riku shook her off his arm so he could zip up the cloak and responded. His eyes were as calm and cool as ever, but he seemed a little… uneasy, even from here. Mickey tried not to laugh out right; Poor Riku was certainly going to have his hands full with that one.

"I do. They're both pretty stubborn, I don't think they'll accept failure." Mickey responded with confidence. He turned from the window to face DiZ. "Besides Riku already told you, didn't he? What path he'll take?" DiZ rolled his eyes and turned to the papers on his desk.

"That boy has too much darkness in him now. He will fall before he succeeds." DiZ replied with no hesitation.

"It will be hard… But not impossible. He's accepted where he stands now." Mickey said in thought and turned towards the window, where the sun was creeping up to the horizon. "He's chosen. I have no doubt that someday, he'll reach the dawn."


	2. Twilight Town: Preparations

**Sorry it took so long! I originally wasn't planning on this being that big a chapter- just a transition or pit stop before leaving for the next world. However, it just ended up spiraling into more and more...oopsie!**

 **Anyways, you can think of this as the part in every game when they run you through mechanics. :D**

 **Disclaimer: Nope...I still don't own Kingdom Hearts -_-"**

 **.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~**

Riku rubbed his shoulder when Melody finally stopped pulling him into town. One would think having Sora and Kairi constantly pulling him around the island for years would have made him immune to this kind of ache. Apparently not.

Melody stopped several feet away when she realized he wasn't following and turned. "C'mon slow poke! We should stock up on a few things before we leave!" Riku just rolled his eyes and slowly began following.

"Are you always like this?" Melody began walking backwards when he got closer and cocked her head to the side in confusion.

"Always like what?" She asked. Riku sighed, having gotten his answer.

"Nevermind. Anyway, I don't really shop. Can't I just meet you somewhere?" He asked and glanced behind her. She easily sidestepped a junk crate that had fallen over, despite her attention never straying from him. Melody shook her head, crossing her arms as she continued walking backwards.

"We need to get to know each other better or we won't be able to work very well together. We can't do that if you go off by yourself." She said matter-of-factly. Riku just mumbled under his breath. Melody giggled softly. "I'm not that bad, am I?" She asked teasingly. Riku just shook his head.

"…Where to?" He asked, glancing behind her once more. She had closed her eyes in thought, but still managed to spin out of the way as two boys and a girl raced by and faced forward. Riku raised an eyebrow, briefly wondering how she could maneuver so well without seeing where she was going.

"First... I think I'd like to have a duel." She decided with an excited grin. They had stopped in the middle of a large lot in the middle of town. To his right, there was a large sign with a countdown to something called a "Struggle". Riku raised an eyebrow.

"Why?" He asked, placing a hand on his hip as he stared at her. Melody slowed to a stop and held her hand out to the side. A long bow with a dark grey hand-guard on it appeared in a flash of light, gently falling into her hand. The hand guard had dozens of tiny multi colored stars decorating its smoothed surface, and something that looked like a dagger pointed outward from it.

"I just need to see how you fight." Riku raised an eyebrow, unsure if that's really all she wanted. He had a nagging thought in the back of his mind that he was being tricked. "Oh, come on. You afraid of little ole' me?" She asked in a super innocent, playful voice. She batted her eyes at him in the same fashion and held her bow under her chin. Riku's sharp turquoise eyes narrowed in a glare and he held his hand out, the Soul Eater Keyblade falling gently into his grasp in a burst of silver and black energy.

Melody hid a triumphant smile behind her bow before walking a few paces from him and settling into a loose fighting stance. She reached over her shoulder, pulling an arrow from the quiver that had appeared with the bow. "Ready?"

Riku panted, leaning against his keyblade. ' _Damnit… she's fast…'_ he thought, trying to catch his breath. She didn't look it, but she was quite the formidable foe. She attacked from a distance for the most part, and could dart away in the blink of an eye.

Even in close distance, her bow did not lose its effectiveness. The guard was strong, and rounded just enough that his attacks could be rerouted away from her body with ease, leaving him open to a retaliating strike. The dagger on the bow was sharp, and forged strong. He had been able to block it two or three times, but in doing so his blade had hit one of the stars decorating the guard, setting off sparks that made his vision dance.

He glared up at the girl standing a few feet away rolling her shoulder. She had a few beads of sweat on her brow and cheek, but she was barely winded. She looked more invigorated than worn.

"How?" He grumbled, more to himself as he finally calmed his breathing enough to stand up straight. The auburn-haired girl heard though and giggled.

"Well, to be fair I probably have a teeny tiny bit more experience than you." Melody said, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. Riku narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously.

"How much is teeny tiny?"

Melody put a finger to her chin in thought, her bow disappearing in a flash of light. "Hmm….10 years? Give or take?" She replied in thought. Riku would have fallen over in surprise if his keyblade hadn't been still out to support him.

"What? How is that possible, I thought you were around my age?" He asked, looking her up and down again. Maybe she was just young looking, and she was actually in her 20s? Melody couldn't help laughing- he was just so cute when he was trying to figure something out!

"I am! I started training when I was first taken in by the Celestial Witch. And I was only around five when that happened." Riku's eyes widened as he watched her stretch out her arms and rub her shoulder again. "Jeez. You hit hard Riku." Melody commented. "Ya know, if you worked on your speed just a bit more, you'd probably knock me on my butt in ten seconds flat." She said, glancing back at him. "...What's with the look?"

"I'm just… surprised. I didn't know people started that young." Riku finally replied, releasing his own weapon. Melody blinked a few times before smiling widely and looking at him hopefully.

"Are you impressed?!" She asked excitedly. Riku jumped a little as she leaned in close- a little too close in her earnestness. He rolled his eyes a few seconds later and flicked her in the forehead with his finger.

"Calm down. It's not like that." He replied calmly. Melody whimpered, rubbing her forehead and pouting as he denied it. "It's just unusual to hear someone training at such a young age, that's all." And it was- no one could deny that. Many kids only started any kind of combat or martial arts training at 10, maybe 9 if they were ambitious. Melody sighed in defeat.

"I guess you're right. More weird than impressive." She replied. Riku chuckled once before he could stop himself.

"I'm not sure weird is the right word." Melody was staring at Riku, a little surprised he actually laughed but happy to see it. He seemed to have loosened up just a smidge. "What's with the smile?" She only smiled wider in response, tilting her head to the side.

"Oh, it's nothing! Just… excited!" She said, trying to divert his attention. "Hey! How about we go get some items? Don't know about you, but I am seriously low on potions- and by low, I mean none!"

 _'Of course you don't have any…'_ Riku thought, but nodded. "Lead the way."

' _She's crazy, she must be.'_ Riku thought with a groan. After an hour and a half, she had dragged him around the entire Tram Commons and Station Heights, insisting they stop at every. Single. Shop. And if she didn't get something, she guilted him into buying something. He was now, to his dismay, broke. His bag was weighed down with potions, eithers, a second set of clothes (insisted on by a certain bubbly auburn-haired girl), a set of enchanted rings, a brand-new journal (another "necessity" Melody insisted on) and he was sure she had slipped more in when he wasn't looking.

"Oh! I would love something to eat! Let's get some ice cream!"

"Aren't we supposed to be meeting Mickey?" Riku said quickly.

"Aww, c'mon. Just one last shop? We can get some for Mickey too!" Melody pleaded, pointing to the small Ice Cream Parlor on the corner. They were currently half way up the hill of Station Heights, heading towards the Station Plaza. Riku was about to say no when he remembered something Mickey had said. Mickey was actually quite a fan of sweets- he said it was the first thing he wanted to eat once they got out of Castle Oblivion. He'd asked Riku what he was going to have, but… Riku hadn't been able to answer.

"…Fine." Riku said, biting back a sigh. "But this is the last stop." He added quickly as he saw hazel eyes brighten up at his consent. Melody nodded in agreement and practically skipped over to the shop, leaving Riku on the corner.

He crossed his arms, leaning against the brick and watching the girl chat animatedly with the clerk. She seemed to have gotten drawn into a story by the old man, showing no signs of this being a quick stop. With a deep breath, he turned his gaze from them, looking out over the shops and street alight with the soft, warm glow of the ever-setting sun. A light breeze blew through the street, cooling shoppers and making the flowers dance happily in their pots. It was…oddly comforting for him.

"It's alright, sir. I'm sure it'll be no trouble!" Melody said to the owner, turning to call Riku over but paused. He was leaning comfortably against a brick building, warmed all day by the sun. His sharp turquoise eyes seemed softened as they looked out over the town, bathed in afternoon sun. A light breeze rustled his normally silver hair, now a warm gold, reflecting the light from the sun. He seemed so calm, tranquil.

Melody felt her face heat up, thinking how beautiful the scene was. He must have felt her gaze, because after a moment he turned to look at her, raising an eyebrow in question. However, Melody's mouth felt a little dry, and her words had died out.

' _Come on, Melody! What is wrong with you?! Snap to it!'_ She scolded herself, shaking her head several times to shoo the odd feeling away. If he wasn't already giving her an odd stare, she would have slapped her face a few times for good measure.

"Riku! Can you come over here a minute? This man needs some help with a locked chest he found!" She called, hoping her smile looked right. She saw him shake his head exasperatedly, but he stood all the same. As he got closer he held his hand out, keyblade gently dropping into his grasp. Melody stepped back a little, watching.

The owner's eyes lit up, curiosity driving him to practically hang over Riku's shoulder. Riku felt a bead of sweat drip down his face but concentrated on the lock. After a few seconds, the tip of Soul Eater glowed a soft red, knowing what it needed to do. As soon as he saw the faint light, Riku tapped the chest twice, a loud click echoing around them and the lid popped open part way. The parlor owner practically giggling with glee, shoved his way in front of RIku to look in the chest.

Melody laughed softly as Riku's eye twitched in annoyance. As the owner turned to thank Riku, Melody felt the bag strapped to her belt heat up, sending a tingling sensation through her hip and leg. ' _A job already?'_ she thought and opened the black bag. She pulled out the old journal taking up most of the space in the small bag, leather still warm from the magic that had just passed through it. Flipping through the pages, Melody came to the last page with writing and looked at the script that had just appeared. As she read over the new mission, her eyes widened in surprise before a large grin nearly split her face in two.

"Something tells me that grin isn't for the free ice cream." Melody jumped as the voice broke through her thoughts. She turned to Riku with a more serious look on her face.

"You got free ice cream?" She asked.

"So, that book is directly connected to this Celestial Witch you work for, and that's how you get missions?" Riku finally said as they sat on the ledge of Station Plaza, eating some of the ice cream. Melody nodded, taking a bite of the popsicle in her right hand.

"Yup. This book was apparently created with part of the Celestial Witch's soul, which is why she can get messages to me no matter what world I happen to be in. It's pretty cool-ehhaahh!" Melody suddenly yelped after taking another large bit from the ice cream bar in her left hand. Her eyes began watering and she rubbed her head with the base of her palms.

"That's what you get for eating so much at once." He said, watching her whimper and nearly drop the treats in both her hands.

"Ya ok, Melody?" Mickey asked, leaning to look around Riku at the poor girl suffering through a brain freeze. Melody's eyes watered a little but she nodded.

"Yes, I think so…" Melody croaked out, blinking away the last tears as feeling came back to her throat and the pain ebbed from her temple. "Hey, how come you guys aren't eating more? That old man was so nice to give us all these frozen treats! You should be enjoying them too!"

"Just because we don't try to eat them all at once, doesn't mean we aren't enjoying them." Riku replied, taking a small bite from the sea-salt ice cream he had. Mickey elbowed him in the side, but couldn't completely hold back a laugh.

"I can see why she wants to though! These are delicious!" Mickey said, taking a bite of the large drumstick cone in his hand for emphasis. Melody nodded in agreement before returning to her own cold treats. "Oh! Melody, where did that journal say we needed to go anyway?" Mickey asked as he took the last few bites of his cone.

Melody sucked the last bit of sea-salt ice cream in her right hand before replying with a happy grin. "Hollow Bastion!" She said with obvious glee. She reached behind Riku for the bag of ice cream but he blocked her, moving it over to his other side by Mickey. The small king hid an amused grin behind his hand as Riku ignored Melody's pout and grumbles. "Before Maleficent arrived, there was a gate there that connected directly to Witch Thera's home. She wants me to reactivate it."

Riku and Mickey glanced at one another before looking back at her. "You do know Merlin went there right after Sora got that old dragon out, don't you?" Mickey asked.

"If there was a portal, wouldn't he have found it by now?" Riku added. Melody shook her head.

"Witch Thera cut off the magic completely from her end when the world was invaded. Even if someone found it, it wouldn't have led anywhere except deep space." She explained, pulling out the journal since Riku obviously wouldn't be sharing any more. She flipped through the pages, searching for something.

"So if it was completely cut off from that end, what are we supposed to do in Hollow Bastion?" Riku asked, trying to casually catch a glimpse of the pages she was flipping past.

"Actually, with you there it should be pretty easy." Melody replied. "The hardest part will be finding it. There's a good chance it's still buried under rubble." She finally stopped on an old page, the edges torn and faded. The elegant script that filled the whole page stood out against the aged yellow paper, along with a small diagram, appearing to depict an intricately designed door. "King Mickey, I might need your help stabilizing it though. My magic's, uh…not the most reliable." She said, looking over at Mickey, tilting the book to show him the page with the required spells on it.

Mickey smiled and jumped up, thumping his chest once. "Just leave it ta me!" Melody nodded once in agreement before looking back down at her book.

"Great! Then all we have to do is find the door, repair any damage done to it, then reactivate and stabilize the magic." She said. She folded the page she was looking at in on itself so she could find it easier later and snapped the book closed.

Meanwhile, Riku had finished his popsicle and was fiddling with the ends of the strings on his cloak as he listened. "You make it sound so simple."

"Sure! Maleficent's gone- what's there to worry about other than a few stray heartless?" Melody replied matter-of-factly.

Mickey was quick to agree. "She's got a point Riku. With Maleficent's forces gone, it can't be that bad anymore. And don't forget, Leon and the others returned there." Melody stood up on the ledge as well, happy to have a little support.

"That's the spirit!" She said. The small creature that had been relaxing in her hood all day poked its head over her shoulder. It mewed once in annoyance but stretched and hopped up fully onto her shoulder. "Oh, Sorry Valifor! I didn't mean to wake you." She said and scratched it lightly under the chin.

"Does that thing do anything besides sleep and bite?" Riku asked, eyeing the critter. He wasn't exactly fond of the little creature. It had bit his cheek twice while they had been shopping earlier- once for waking him up and the second time…well he wasn't sure. He figured he got a little too close to the creature or its owner for its liking.

Melody rolled her eyes, lowering her hand. "Sure he does, but he's a baby! They need lots of sleep!" She said, shaking her head as the tiny wind creature yawned and ruffled the golden feathers lining its front paws. It seemed to send a glare in Riku's direction before slipping back down into Melody's hood. Riku glared at Melody's shoulder where the creature had disappeared behind. Stupid little thing.

"So, why can't I just make us a portal? It'd be easy to-" Riku was saying as he looked around the inside of the station. Melody was following the wall to the right of the doorway and called out over her shoulder before he could finish.

"No way!" She said in a loud, stern voice. "Portals like that are not only traceable, but they can damage the world's protective barrier. Not to mention it takes a _lot_ of dark magic." Riku tensed when she mentioned dark magic, guilt evident in his eyes. His fingers curled into a fist at his side. He had never known it took a lot of magic. When he had started opening his own dark portals, he was already drawing on the power of the Seeker. If it really did take a lot, he couldn't help wondering what else he had done without thinking that had taken as much dark magic. Had it been enough to permanently stain his heart?

"Riku!? You in there?" Riku blinked twice as he was drawn back to the present. Melody was crouched down, head tilted to the side so she could look up at his face. Mickey stood next to her, looking up at him worriedly.

"Ya ok Riku? You seemed to space out there for a minute…" Mickey said while watching Riku rub his eyes a few times.

"Yeah…Sorry. What were you saying?" He said, finally looking between Mickey and Melody. Melody sighed.

"Jeez, you weren't kidding when you said this guy needs looking after…" She mumbled to Mickey. Riku gave her a cold stare as she stood, seeming oblivious to his agitation. "I said, I found the gate! If you're ready, we can leave." Riku nodded, his body still a little tense as he followed the two around the corner and down past a parked train to a far, out of the way corner.

On closer inspection, Riku could smell it. The scent was neither completely light or dark, it almost smelled more like raw energy, than magic. It churned lazily around the corner, not expanding far into the station. Every few a seconds sparks of green emitted from the space, although he doubted a passerby would notice.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Melody said and stopped to look back at the others, for once a serious glimmer in her eye. "I know you both have traveled between worlds for a while now, but the Lanes Between is a really dangerous place. I can show you how to navigate them, but until then there are a few rules." She said, looking between the two to make sure they were listening. Mickey nodded, his ears twitching as he listened intently. Riku was looking at her too, but he had rolled his eyes and only gave her a dull look. "Always wear those cloaks while in the Lanes Between- it may not be the Corridors of Darkness, but the Space can still really tear you apart without proper protection." Mickey nodded, pulling his hood up and nudging Riku to do the same. "Next, don't lose sight of one another. You definitely don't want to get separated and blown off while there. Without knowing how to navigate it, you could be lost for a _long_ time." She continued. Riku sighed.

"We know that. As you said, we've done this before." Riku said with only slight annoyance in his voice. Mickey nudged him in the leg. Melody took a deep breath before continuing.

"Yes, but the Lanes Between is different than using darkness or gummi ships to travel. Light and dark are constantly tugging on one another, and the spectral winds there never die down." She explained, crossing her arms. "The most important thing you need to remember is don't try to open the gates or create your own portals. Not until I can show you how to properly do it." Her hazel orbs narrowed on the two as she spoke. When they both finally nodded she smiled happily.

Valifor moved up next to her neck as Melody pulled her own hood up, tugging it all the way up and over her eyes. "Great! Now we're off!" She said, pep and energy back in her movements and voice. With that declared she held her hand out, the back of it facing away from her at the green sparks. The insignia on her glove glowed a soft yellow as the energies grew in response, extended into a vortex of greens and yellows.

Mickey looked up at Riku, who was staring intently at the growing energy. "You ready, Riku?" He asked in an unsure tone. After a long moment Riku looked down at Mickey.

"Yeah. Let's get started." He said, nodding to his little friend. His eyes moved back to the vortex, eyes sharpening in determination. As the energies settled, the gate fully opened, they both stepped forward to follow Melody into the light.

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 **And that wraps up Twilight Town for the time being. Hope you all enjoyed it!**

 **Hollow Bastion- Here we come!**


	3. Lanes Between: Dark Intent

**Thank you so much for the reviews! I hope you continue enjoying this story!**

 **This chapter may seem a little slow, but it _is_ necessary- and a little dramatic!**

 **Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is not mine...**

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Riku looked out over the vastness in the Lanes Between. Twilight Town had fallen away not long ago and they now trudged down the path that was illuminated by the insignia on Melody's glove. It shown like a lantern, lighting a path and acting as a shield against the strong guests of wind. He watched as worlds went by, the spectral winds causing them to shimmer like illusions before drifting away. The few that seemed familiar were the clearest; One world had a garden and maze, with a large heart shape in it. Several longs moments later a world past that was dominated by a desert, with a stone city looming over part while the opposite side was dominated by a tiger head made from sand.

Many of the worlds had strong barriers of light wrapped around them though, hiding details and protecting these worlds from outside threats. On these worlds, if he were lucky he could make out a shape or two, but nothing more than that. As he watched worlds and stars pass, he smiled. Seeing so many unexplored worlds and places tugged at his curiosity- deep down he hoped he'd have the opportunity to see them all.

' _I still have that, at least.'_ He thought as they walked past a world dominated by what looked like a large castle. It was one small thing that hadn't changed since he'd left that small, small island he grew up on.

"Hey, that's my world!" Mickey exclaimed, pointing at it with a gleeful smile. Melody looked over her shoulder, her steps slowing a bit.

"Really? Did you want to stop and say hello?" Melody asked but Mickey just shook his head with an obviously strained smile.

"It'd be great to see everyone! But…It'd be hard to leave again." He replied, seeming lost in thought for a moment. "Besides, I wouldn't know what to tell them all about Donald and Goofy." Mickey added with one last glance at his home, watching it shimmer once before disappearing from sight. Melody's smile dimmed a little but she nodded and turned back to watch the path.

"What do you mean, Mickey?" Riku asked, his gaze finally moving from the skies down to his friend. "I thought you loved traveling." He asked in a confused voice.

"Yep, I do! All the new things to see and people to meet- it's great!" Mickey said while looking up to Riku. "But I love my friends and family and home even more!" He explained, eyes softening. "You'll understand one day. You'll find people that mean more to you than even seeing all this." He said with a wave of his hand at the starry space. Riku rolled his eyes, grateful his hood could hide the action from his friend.

Melody glanced over her shoulder at Riku. "You'd do anything for your friends Sora and Kairi, right?" She said almost matter-of-factly. Riku frowned, wondering if he really would.

He had nearly destroyed their home, their island, just so they could all _finally_ see the outside world. He struck a deal with Maleficent to travel the worlds and search for them. He gave himself over to the darkness when that fairy had said it would revive Kairi. But… ' _Was it really for them? Or just to satisfy my own thirst for power and adventure?'_ He felt like he didn't really understand anything from back then anymore. Maleficent had spent so much time whispering things in his ear- he wasn't sure what had been his thoughts or hers.

"Riku! Don't fall too far behind!" Melody called out. Riku jumped, being pulled from his darkening thoughts and looked up. Melody and Mickey had gotten several yards ahead and had stopped, turning to look back at him. He shook his head in an attempt to clear his mind and picked his pace up. As he jogged to catch up to them, something caught his eye- Hollow Bastion.

As he neared them he saw the familiar castle fade in and out of view and begin passing by. ' _What's going on, I thought we were…?'_ Riku's eyes narrowed as it slipped past before looking back to Melody who had continued walking, though her eyes were trained now to the side opposite of where he saw Hollow Bastion floating by. ' _Is she really taking us there?'_ Was she lying earlier? Where were they really going?

For a moment, Maleficent and her quiet voice and twisted smile filled his mind. Anger built up in him. Melody was doing the same thing! A kind voice, offering to help him with his friend while really she would scheme behind his back. Unknowingly, his eyes shifted gold for a split second and he reached out.

"Riku, you ok-" Mickey asked, sensing the boy draw close, but his voice cut off as a surge of darkness washed over them all. He gasped and turned, along with Melody. Riku's left hand was engulfed in silvery-black energy and he had turned to the side, stepping off the path she had carved. Mickey was already running towards him, trying to stop him.

"Riku, don't!" Melody cried out, but it was too late. Dark energy ripped through the air, blasting a hole in the shimmery walls between them and Hollow Bastion. There was a second of still air, and then a huge backlash of darkness and spectral winds blasted all of them. Melody reached out and grabbed Mickey just as he was lifted into the air and nearly thrown backwards. "Hang on Your Majesty!"

As the backlash of energy died down they were all suddenly sucked forward, the wind impossible to stand against. Melody reach a hand out to Riku as they were pulled through.

"Riku!" She called trying to get his attention.

Riku groaned, shaking his head as he suddenly felt weightless.

"Riku!" Melody called again desperately. Riku glanced over finally, just in time to see Melody. Her hand was outstretched trying to reach him, her hazel orbs widened in fear. A large gust of wind suddenly picked up though and she screamed, being blown away from him quickly and roughly.

Riku's eyes widened as he saw her and Mickey get blown through the large dark portal. ' _What the hell have I done?'_

 ** _.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~_**

 **A little short, but this was meant more as a filler. Hollow Bastion was originally supposed to be pretty straight-forward. But as I was playing KH2 (again) I saw a place in the distance that I can never get to in the game (any guesses where?). I decided Melody and Riku must explore this unknown place! So I'm basically rewriting all of the Hollow Bastion episode to include it.**

 **I Hope to get the next chapter up within the next week.**


	4. Hollow Bastion: Lost & Found

**Hi all! This took a little longer than I thought to write, but I really didn't want to skimp on it and just race through. Beginnings are hard for me... X_X**

 **Hope you all enjoy!**

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 **Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is not mine, nor will it ever be mine, sadly. I only own Melody and the storyline!**

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Riku let out a groan as he slowly blinked the remnants of unconsciousness away. His head was pounding and left arm tingling painfully. There was a soft chatter by his head and he slowly sat up, only to groan again and almost fall over.

"Not _you,_ damn rat!" He said in dismay, glaring at the small wind spirit sitting on his shoulder. It hissed and flexed its claws into his shoulder, clearly upset with him. "Valifor, was it? Why aren't you with…" Riku began but trailed off as he looked around. He had landed on a dirty stone balcony, very high up. He only sat a few feet from the crumbling rail of the balcony but he couldn't see any ground from there. Behind him, a wide entry opened up into a large round room with an old silvery table right in the center. The walls were a faded purple, the floor the same dark stone as the balcony. It seemed familiar somehow. But most important perhaps, he was sitting there alone.

"Ouch! Knock it off!" Riku half yelled when Valifor nipped his cheek. He swiped at the little creature but it just jumped up, avoiding his hand and flittering back down to land in the hood of his cloak, which had been blown off when they had been pulled through that dark passage… ' _The one I opened…'_ Riku thought, vaguely remembering that it had come from him.

' _I defeated Ansem though. He shouldn't have control over me anymore, so why did that happen?'_ He thought while slowly standing and walking over to the rail. A heavy scent of stale magic met his nose and he nearly choked from the rotting smell, one he'd been able to smell even before this sense had developed. "Oh, shit!" He hissed as the familiar surroundings suddenly clicked into place.

Not far in the distance, stood the twisted castle of Hollow Bastion. The vast expanse stretching out from the structure that had once been hidden by mist and rising water was now a barren wasteland, made up of blue rock. He leaned over the balcony, looking down.

He was in the highest room of one of five twisted towers, the large insignia of the heartless just starting below the balcony he was on. Far below, the once beautiful granite and marble buildings were crushed by dirtied white stone that had fallen away from the towers long ago. And surrounding the small cluster of buildings was a massive, writhing sea of heartless.

He had landed right in the middle of Villain's Vale.

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Melody whimpered and shook her head several times, trying to clear the black spots still dotting her vision. Not that it helped any. She squinted her eyes and rolled over onto her stomach, supporting herself with a bruised arm.

The incredibly dark room was large, made completely of stone. The only light was what came in through the hole in the roof that she had created when she was flung through it. However, the sky was clouded and what little light there was came through in a single shaft. She could just barely make out dark shapes throughout the room-some seeming to move.

Melody bit her lip as she looked for something familiar. "Riku? Mickey?" She called tentatively. Her only response was a loud creak from somewhere out in the darkness as loose stones tumbled down to the floor from somewhere. Melody began to sit up a little straighter, but sudden sharp pains all along her back and left side took nearly all her breath and she immediately leaned back down. As she tried to force air back into her lungs she blindly felt her belt and cursed silently when her fingers closed around air. She had forgotten to equip some of the potion vials they had bought- she'd just stuffed them into her bag along with everything else she was excitedly grabbing.

"Ok, probably not the best time to get the shopping bug Melody." She scolded herself and began feeling around for her bag as much as her bruised body allowed. Again, however, her search came up empty. "Riku, when I find you again I swear I'm gonna smack you." She grumbled. "Valifor?" She called. After a few seconds of no movement from her hood she shifted as much as she dared and called again for the little creature.

' _Oh gods…'_ Melody thought. Her body began to shake, though this time it wasn't from pain. "Valifor? Mickey?" She tried calling out, a little louder now. The breath she had just gotten back sped up as she realized no one was going to answer. "Riku?!" She yelled in desperation.

She was alone. Completely, and utterly alone. Her breathing hitched and her hazel eyes became watery. "Anyone…" She mumbled. Panic that had blossomed in her stomach spread through-out her body in a matter of seconds. She tried again to move, to crawl at least, but even that was nearly too painful. After only making it a few feet she stopped, rolling over to lean against a wall that still stood. She looked up at the small shaft of light and sighed, knowing there was one last thing she could try.

' _Please turn out right.'_ Melody thought before closing her eyes to focus on her injuries healing. She pictured the wounds stitching up, bruises fading, pain ebbing away. Bright, warm green light gathered around her hand. She traced the ancient insignia of healing in her mind's eye around her hand as the green light began to focus. ' _Please work this time!'_ She thought once more before opening her eyes and raising her arm as much as she could, hand stretched out over her head.

"Cura!" She half-yelled in a strong, firm voice. Immediately the warm green exploded from her hand in a brilliant flash and she instinctively turned her eyes from the blinding light. The warmth caressed her body for a split second before bursting out past her.

As soon as the warmth disappeared the pain returned and Melody hissed, holding her side where she could feel at least one broken rib. She opened her eyes and glanced around. She could see a little better, but now the entire building was covered in bright green moss and vines. Hundreds of tiny flowers were spread out along the floor, walls, even over the ceiling and climbing out of the hole she had made.

"Why does this always happen?!" She cried. Magic always backfired on her- why would it be any different this time? Now she was drained of magic and officially overwhelmed by pain and fear. ' _I don't want to be alone…'_

"Riku! Mickey!" She cried out again as loud as her voice permitted, hoping someone would finally hear her.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Mickey's large ears twitched and turned. He looked around, thinking he had heard a scream. Mickey stood on the edge of the canyon that most of the heartless were swarming around in and turned to look back at the mess of buildings. "What was that? Someone's in there?" He looked around before hoping up on a large crumbled pile of building. A few moments later another scream reached his ears, though he couldn't understand what was said.

"I better check this out, it might have been Riku or Melody…" He mumbled. "Hold on guys! I'll find you soon." He said before leaping down and running towards the ruins.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Riku paused in his decent. After making sure the rock his foot was braced on wasn't going anywhere, he turned and looked around. He had heard it- a panicked scream of some kind. "Someone else is out here?" Riku mumbled in disbelief. "No... That had to have been Melody or Mickey. No one could break through that swarm of heartless." He reasoned with himself. He glanced around for a platform he could stand on so he could try and find the source of the scream.

He had been fighting his way down the levels of stairs in the tower for a good hour before he came to a road block of sorts. The side of the tower had been knocked in long ago, the rubble completely blocking the rest of the stairs. After checking to see if he could find another way through _inside_ , he had sighed. Looking down the side of the tower, it seemed to be rocky and uneven and there were several places where exposed pipe offered a flat surface to rest.

' _What have I gotten myself into?'_ He thought before cautiously stepping out and making the jump over to the pipe closest to him. As it creaked and swayed, he braced himself to try and jump back to the building. But after several longs seconds it stilled and he let out a small sigh of relief. He had then began the long descent from the top of the tower. He was a little over half way down now.

Riku heard another scream, this one sounding more desperate. Valifor perked up out of his hood, ears straight and forward as he listened to the faint echo. He mewed once before turning and tugging on the silvery strands of hair he could reach. Riku winced at the sudden tug and looked over his shoulder.

"You think you can survive a jump from this height be my guest, useless rat." He grumbled and began feeling around for his next step. The creature hissed at him angrily but turned back to look down over Riku's shoulders, far below to the buildings. Riku rolled his eyes as the creature settled back down and found another step down. He glanced over at a small flat space of pipe he was aiming for to see if he could jump yet. It was still about twenty feet down and a little too far to the side for him to reach if he jumped.

A soft green glow suddenly expanded from one of the buildings below, racing upward as it dispersed on the wind. Riku paused in reaching for a divot in the tower as the fresh scent traveling with it caught his attention. ' _Melody?'_ But… the scent seemed off- it wasn't the same as the bubbly girl he'd left Twilight Town with. It was jittery, but also much more subdued than he thought possible. ' _What happened to her?'_ he wondered .

He glanced down and decided with a boost of wind at the right time, he could just make it to the next pipe. He took a deep breath, forcing wind around his legs. ' _C'mon Riku.'_ He scolded himself when he hesitated. He didn't like to admit it, but this was his fault. Somehow, he'd messed up…again. He had to fix it.

He had let his distrust of others cloud his mind, and memories of previous betrayals lead his actions. That must have been how Ansem's darkness came out. He'd defeated Ansem, he should be sleeping within his heart. Were his thoughts waking the Seeker of Darkness?

Riku shook his head and focused on the platform. He could puzzle it out more when he wasn't hanging at least a hundred feet up on the side of a crumbling tower. Just as he let go of the side of the tower, pushing off as hard as he could, a low growl rumbled around him. As he fell towards the area of flat pipe he saw a large flash of maroon swoop by.

He barely landed on the edge of the pipe and immediately rolled away, avoiding a sudden blast of fire. "Wyverns. Of course." Riku growled while calling his keyblade to him. He stood and turned quickly to face the three large heartless, swaying back and forth around his platform. His eyes sharpened as he glared at them fiercely. "Out of the way!"

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Melody cringed when there was a loud growl from high above the building. "Riku? Mickey?" She whimpered and forced her head back to look up. "Please let that have been you."

" _Melody. I'm afraid something has happened."_

The voice from a memory long ago echoed through her ears and she quickly covered them, bowing her head. "Go away…" She mumbled as one of her darkest memories stirred. The memory that spurred her deepest fear.

" _Do not accuse the Celestial Witch of being wrong child. If she says they are dead, then it is so."_

The logical, strict voice of the Celestial Witch's right-hand apprentice filled the quiet space around her and Melody shook her head. Her fingers clenched around her ears as she desperately tried to block out the voices from her past.

Slowly the darkness from her closed eyes faded to the inner chamber of the Star Temple- the home of the Celestial Witch. A child, around five or six stood before the tall person, whose eyes always seemed distant.

" _Melody. I'm afraid something has happened." The witch said, her dark blue-gray eyes focusing on the child for only a few seconds as she spoke. A small Melody looked up at the lady before her with a mix of confusion and apprehension._

" _Yes, Witch Thera?" She said as confidently as she could, fingers curling into the hem of her purple sweatshirt._

" _It would seem Master Eraqus and the keyblade wielder Terra have fallen."_

 _Hazel eyes widened in shock as the calm, firm words washed over her like ice water. The Witch didn't seem to notice or didn't feel the need to give her a moment before she continued._

" _I also can no longer see the keyblade wielders Ventus or Aqua. Their hearts are beyond even my sight." She paused and glanced behind the paling girl before finishing. "And if this is so, then it means their hearts have been lost, and are beyond saving…"_

 _Melody's tiny body began to shake as the words replied over and over again in her head. "You're lying…" She mumbled, so softly no one could hear._

" _I am sorry, little one. I realize this must be hard, given that it was the good Master that found and cared for you before being sent here. If needed, I can grant you a few days off to-"_

" _You're lying!" Melody screamed as loud as she could, tears now pouring down her cheeks as she glared up at the tall woman._

" _Quiet girl." A stern voice from behind her said. "Do not accuse the Celestial Witch of being wrong, child. If she says they are dead, then it is so."_

 _Melody shook her head, as her body shook with sadness and fear. They were all she had. She was supposed to return to them. Master Eraqus had promised to train her when she returned. Terra had even offered to help. Ven had so much confidence in her being able to become a wielder like them… Aqua told her they were friends now- they would be her new family…_

" _Enough Sulo. The girl has lost something precious. Leave her be."_

' _I lost…?' Melody couldn't finish the thought. Her body felt like ice, and her world began to lose its color as the Celestial Witch's words circled around and around her head. 'They can't be gone…"_

"Melody! Snap out of it!"

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Riku forced himself not to cringe as he found Melody, seemingly in shock, though he wasn't sure on the cause. At first, he had thought it was due to the injuries she had. He could only assume the fresh hole in the ceiling he had entered from had been made by her- she must have been covered in bruises and cracked bones. He saw some blood matting her bangs down and drying along the side of her cheek. However, when he called out to her, she didn't answer.

As he got closer, he realized her whole body was shaking and her breathing was short and quick. Her fingers dug into her hair, palms flat against her ears. Her eyes were screwed shut and her head bent down, nearly touching her knees. She was in shock. He called her name as he got closer, but again, she didn't say anything.

' _I should have gotten here sooner.'_ Riku thought as he knelt next to her and shook her shoulder. It had taken some time to get past the heartless. Wyverns usually traveled in packs, and the three that had found Riku ended up sending out a distress call, alerting the other six members of their group. Valifor had then nearly dragged him off the piping after that, seeming desperate to get to the building now oddly covered in vines and flowers.

As he had traveled lower and lower, more heartless had appeared, most of them ones that could fly or float unfortunately. When he had finally made it to the mess of rubble and buildings, shadows and neoshadows had also crept around. Although oddly, not many of them swarmed him as he fought off the last few Wyvern and Darkballs. Some seemed to cautiously begin leaving their hiding places, but they would immediately slink to the floor and pull back. It was odd, but he wasn't going to complain. Since the heartless seemed eerily subdued it had only taken him about five minutes to make it to the vine covered building.

His relief of finding someone had been short-lived. Melody had dragged herself out of the light coming in from the ceiling and was leaning against the wall only a few feet from the pile of stones and brick. And she looked to be in very bad shape.

He grabbed a potion vial from the clip on his belt and poured it over her head while he continued trying to coax her out of her stupor. "C'mon you weird girl. Snap out of it." He said after he made sure the potion was healing the large cut hidden by her bangs. As he swept her bangs up so he could look at the wound better, he realized tears were beginning to tumble down her paling cheeks.

"Melody? Melody!" He said again and shook her harder. "Melody! Snap out of it!" He nearly yelled. The auburn-haired girl jumped and her head shot up. Her eyes widened as she looked at him confusedly. "Don't do that again." Riku said with a relieved sigh and relaxed back, brushing silver strands of hair from his face. "Are you ok?-" He started asking but was cut off as the girl's arms suddenly wrapped around his waist, her head falling onto his chest.

' _What …is…she…'_ Turquoise eyes widened and blinked several times in confusion. He glanced down at the girl and lifted his arms but didn't know what to do beyond that. Should he pat her back? Pull her away? Leave her be?

"I'm gonna punch you really hard later, you jerk." She mumbled into his cloak. He raised an eyebrow and looked down at her. "And a-a lecture, you're d-definitely getting a lecture for n-not following my ru-rules." She added through a few sniffs. He frowned, sighing.

"Your words and actions aren't matching up." He said, finally tapping the back of her arm in hopes she'd realize what she was doing. After a moment of silence Valifor crawled out of his hood and crossed over to Melody, wrapping his tail around her shoulder and nuzzling her cheek in comfort.

Melody took a deep breath and leaned back against the wall, patting Valifor's soft feathery fur with one hand and wiping at her eyes with the other. She looked up at him, her eyes still glassy, but she laughed softly. "You look like you're w-waiting for me to e-explode." She said, sagging against the wall behind her. Riku looked away and stood up, crossing his arms.

"Would be easier for me if you did." He mumbled, glancing away from her.

"Hey! Shouldn't that be m-my line? You pretty much hurled me from space into a stone building." Melody said weakly. "Have any p-potions? I think a few of my ribs are cracked." She said, looking up at him expectantly. He rolled his eyes and pushed his cloak to the side, reaching for another potion from his belt.

"Didn't you just buy a lot before we left?" He asked and turned back to pour the liquid over her. She gave him a guilty smile but sighed as the green liquid seeped into her body, repairing the damaged bones it found. Riku watched for a moment to make sure it was working, but eventually turned away, looking back around the space.

He was still waiting for her to yell at him over what he'd done. Or even just leave. He wouldn't have blamed her. He glanced around again. "I guess Mickey didn't land here with you." He said, not seeing any sign of the small king.

"He should be nearby. Don't worry." She replied and opened an eye to look at him, but Riku didn't notice. "Hey, Riku?" He glanced over his shoulder at her, his only response. "What were you thinking about? When you opened that passageway?" Riku crossed his arms, turning away from her with a frown.

"Why do you ask?" He finally said, his arms tightening around himself. Had she seen him? The other him, locked deep within his heart?

Melody watched him tense up and seemed to think about her next words carefully. "You looked…hurt. Like someone had just stabbed you in the back…"

Riku didn't know what he could say, so he said nothing. Even though he had agreed to working with her, and spent an afternoon with her, deep down he knew he still didn't really trust her. And unfortunately, it had showed. How was he supposed to say that?

"I just remembered something that happened when I was in Hollow Bastion before. That's all." Melody raised an eyebrow as he spoke, not even bothering to turn all the way around and look at her. Her hazel stare bore into his back, and it felt like she was trying to look right through him. "When I was here, I put my trust in the wrong people. This place just reminded me of it." He reluctantly added. It seemed to pacify the girl- he nearly sighed in relief when he felt her searching gaze ebb.

"Trust, huh?" She said thoughtfully. Riku flinched, but finally glanced over his shoulder at her. Melody was looking up at the hole in the ceiling, though her eyes seemed distant.

Riku kicked at a few pebbles as silence settled around them again. ' _She's more perceptive than I thought.'_ He noted grudgingly. Just because she'd had the same attitude as Sora, didn't mean she was quite as simple as he was.

"Hey, can I have another potion? My legs still aren't working." Melody finally said, her voice oddly normal. Riku gave her a confused look but pulled one more potion out and walked back over to hand it to her. She nodded her head in thanks and grabbed the vial. "I understand, I think." She said, popping the cork out and pouring it over a cut on her thigh. Riku leaned against the wall next to her, turning his gaze away.

"Understand what?"

Melody poured some more of the healant along her other leg, letting it soak in before answering. "You haven't really had anyone to rely on since you left your home, right?" She asked, but didn't give him too much time to respond.

"The one person you did finally trust enough to actually help you, betrayed you in the end. I can see where trusting people after that would be hard." Melody looked up at him with a tired smile. "Guess that means I'll have to work extra hard to prove to you I'm not up to anything." She poured the last of the potion over her legs and let it soak in a few seconds before standing up and stretching her limbs a few times to make sure everything was better.

RIku blinked once, then twice, staring at her in surprise. "Just like that?" He asked in disbelief. Melody couldn't help a small laugh before nodding.

"I think you owe me a real explanation for where that passageway came from. But that can wait until we actually get to Hollow Bastion."

Riku frowned and looked down at the ground with a sigh. "You take things way too lightly."

"I'm being serious!" Melody said and gave him a small glare. "I knew from the start there'd be some bumps. Granted, I didn't think those bumps would include falling out of the sky and through a building on the first day…" She trailed off, Riku wincing. "But I didn't expect you to warm right up to me either. You don't seem like that type of guy. And that's just fine." She finished.

Riku looked at her, seeing only sincerity and determination in her eyes. He took a deep breath. "I can't promise it won't happen again." He replied and looked down at his hands. "I have a long way to go before I can return home. I…" His voice quieted, but he told himself he had to get this out. He pressed on. "I have a lot of darkness that I still have to overcome." Melody smiled and nudged his shoulder with hers.

"It's alright. King Mickey and I will always be here to help!" She said before there was a spark of realization in her eye. "Speaking of the King, we should probably find him." She added and looked up at the hole in the ceiling- the only way left out, since vines covered all the windows and doors. Riku watched her a long moment, a sudden warmth flowing through him.

' _Always here to help…'_ He thought with the barest hint of a smile before following her.

Riku glanced around as they headed towards the pile of rock to get up to the opening. "Why is this building covered in vines anyway?" He asked. He saw her cringe and nearly misstep on her way up to the roof and crossed his arms, staring intently at her.

Melody turned to look over her shoulder with an innocent smile. "Just a little…mishap with a spell?" She answered, although it sounded more like a question to Riku. He raised an eyebrow, not saying anything. He continued staring at her carefully. Melody whimpered and turned back around, reaching for the edge of the roof and pulling herself up to sit on it. She sighed dramatically before meeting his gaze. "I'm not the greatest with magic, ok? I tried to cast a cure spell, but all _this-_ " she waved her hand around the green room. "- is what happened instead." She groaned.

Riku looked around again. "All _this_ from a little cure spell?" He asked, hopping up next to her. Melody looked down dejectedly, fiddling with the hem of her vest and nodding.

"No matter what spell, it always ends up totally off!" She whimpered and stood to follow him off over the roof top.

"You really suck at magic." Riku said before he could stop himself. Melody groaned again as she caught up to him.

"I just don't get what it is that I do wrong…." She muttered and crossed her arms in thought. Riku nearly let out a relieved breath when she didn't get mad at his blunt statement. He didn't think he could handle anymore drama right now.

Melody looked up in thought, finally catching sight of the tall scarred towers and her eyes widened. "…We're not in that creepy ruined town outside the castle-town of Hollow Bastion…are we?" She asked hopefully, slowly looking back to Riku. He nodded once, surprised she knew it.

"Yeah, I think its nickname is Villain's Vale… Why do you look so nervous?" He asked, seeing her quickly turn in circles and suddenly looking down over the edges of the roof they were currently crossing.

"We need to find Mickey- _now!"_ She said, her eyes hardening as she spoke. "Something really bad lives here and we _do not_ want to cross paths with it." As she spoke she looked around. Riku began looking around too and wandered to the other side of the roof.

As he leaned over, a vague scent wafted through the air, rising up from the darkness between the buildings. It was definitely something dark, and far more stale than the scents that clung to the tops of the tower. He narrowed his eyes as the shadows amongst the rubble began moving.

"Riku! I think I see something." Melody called from the next rooftop over. Just as he turned his gaze from the stirring darkness to her, the shadows sped up, jittering frantically before bursting up into the sky.

Riku gasped and quickly backed up as they spewed up from between the roofs like a geyser. Melody let out a surprised yelp as the small dark creatures landed around them, scurrying about. Her bow immediately appeared in her hand as they began clawing their way across the tiles of the roof. Riku summoned his keyblade as well, but paused after knocking only a few away. Something was off.

Heartless that should hungrily attack anything living, seemed to barely notice the two. They landed hard and scurried away from the place they were emerging from. Some even bumped into his legs in their mad attempt to flee. He glanced over at Melody, who had an arrow notched, but she wasn't paying attention to the scurrying shadows. She scanned the buildings around them carefully, her body tense.

"We need to move. It's too open here." She said. Not too far ahead, there were small spires coming up from a sturdy building, it's green roof still fully intact. She glanced at Riku before pointing at it. "There! We should be able to spot Mickey and have some cover." She said and started towards it.

Riku frowned and only took a few steps to follow her before pausing. "You gonna tell me what's going on?" He asked, glancing up at the spire she was aiming for. It was easily the strongest looking structure around, but her sudden shift in demeanor had him on edge.

Melody let out a huff and marched back over to him. "I will _later._ When we're somewhere a little safer than out in the open on the top of a _roof_!" She said exasperatedly. "Now _come on!"_ She grabbed his hand and dragged him behind her with much more force than he thought she could muster. Riku muttered under his breath but began jogging so she wouldn't have to pull on him.

Behind him he heard a low rumble, the buildings beneath them creaking despite being made of heavy stone. He glanced over his shoulder, but saw only part of a building many yards away crumbling. "What was that?" He asked as they hopped onto the roof the spires were coming up from.

" _That_ is why we need to get out of sight." Melody replied and let go of his hand to jump up to another level of the roof. As she disappeared over the edge she let out a startled scream and there was a loud thud. Riku's eyes widened and he quickly followed, lifting his keyblade into position. However, as he cleared the ledge he stopped, torn between surprised and amused.

Melody was flat on her back, eyes going in and out of focus, arms spread out at odd angles and one lag crammed against the side of the spire. And looking just as disoriented, was Mickey. He lay across Melody's stomach, his arms spread and keyblade resting only a few inches from his grasp. The pair groaned in pain, Mickey finally shaking his head a few times to bring himself back to his senses.

"Mickey! You're all right!" Riku said, giving him a small, relieved smile and walking over to the jumbled up twosome. Mickey turned his gaze to the boy, taking a moment to realize who it was. When he did though, he gave the boy a big smile.

"Riku!" He glanced around and realized who had tumbled into him. "Melody! You guys are all right! I've been lookin' all over for ya!" He said in relief and somersaulted off Melody, who was just starting to look around in confusion.

"What happened?" She groaned and awkwardly sat up, rubbing her neck. She blinked a few times, her eyes slowly focusing on Mickey who had picked up his keyblade and was now giving her a worried look.

"Gee, I'm sorry Melody. I didn't even notice you headin' this way."

"Don't worry. She wasn't paying much attention to where she was going either." Riku commented as he stopped in front of the girl. Melody frowned and finally gave Riku a small glare.

"I'm sorry, who was it that got grumpy and tossed us all from space?" She mumbled and shakily stood, dusting herself off. Riku felt his eye twitch and briefly wondered how much Mickey would protest leaving this girl behind and continuing on their own. That _had_ been their original plan after all…

The ground shook again, this time accompanied by a low growl that echoed against the buildings. A shiver ran down Melody's spine and she gasped. "Oh yea, we should be hiding! Not jabbing at each other! C'mon." She said, remembering what had been driving her to hurry before.

"Why do we need to hide? Whoa!" Mickey was asking when she grabbed him and tossed him up to the roof right of the spire, right next to the window.

"Hurry up!" She said, motioning to Riku. The building creaked under their feet, the growl echoing again through the ruins. Dark energies danced in the air, causing Riku to wrinkle his nose as it became nearly overwhelming. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to heed her words this once.

Riku grabbed the edge of the eave and swung up onto the green tiled roof. Mickey had already pushed the rusted window aside and crawled in, still confused but he could feel the urgency in Melody's words. Riku hopped through the window, closely followed by Melody.

Immediately, she pushed their heads down below the sill and shushed them before they could speak. The three held their breath, as something ominously dark crawled across their senses and a large shadow slowly blocked the light coming from the window.

The low growls and rumbles were so loud now, seeming as if they were coming from right outside the spire they were hiding in. Several long tense moments passed as whatever it was seemed to linger there, the shadow unmoving.

Riku held his breath, the overwhelming dread and darkness nearly suffocating as they waited for the creature to move on. He glanced to his side. Mickey sat next to him, his eyes narrowed as he watched the shadow closely on the wall opposite them. On the small king's other side Melody knelt, her bow still in hand as she looked over her shoulder at the window. Both were tense as they waited in the silence, holding their breath as he was.

Finally, after many long tense moments, the creature withdrew. The buildings rumbled again as it moved, it's growls and groans no longer breathing right down their necks.

As it moved away, Melody slowly rose enough for her head to peek over the edge of the window sill. Assuming that was a cue it was ok to look, both Riku and Mickey found themselves also rising enough to see. Riku gasped at the sight.

The creature's body, easily as big as the buildings, appeared somewhat like a giant Shadow heartless. It's eyes glowed red though, and its mouth was just barely visible in the inky black mass. Large science tubes protruded from its neck, all packed full of what looked like hearts. Pieces of rock and debris was scattered along its shoulders and limbs, seeming to have been embedded in the creature when it moved past the buildings. As it had turned, something looked like it had been branded into its back, still glowing an orangish-red. A radiating symbol, looking like a sun was nearly being eclipsed by what may have been a moon, which was paler color than the sun.

" _What_ is _that?_ " Riku whispered, still starring after the creature in shock. Melody glanced over at him then down at Mickey, who finally glanced up at her, also silently asking. She turned to look back at the creature.

" _That_ is what's known as a Remnant." She replied watching it smash a claw into a building, heartless scurrying from the destruction quickly.

"A Remnant?" Mickey asked, looking back at the thing.

"Bits and fragments of memory embedded into the very world." Melody explained in a whisper. "When something exceptionally good happens, or there's a lot of positive emotions, it heals the world. Almost cleanses it." Melody paused, watching the creature with an almost sad gaze. "But when something bad happens, the negative emotions and thoughts are absorbed by the world. It's almost like a scar that can never heal. If the feelings and memories are strong, it develops a consciousness of its own, acting on those thoughts and feelings left behind. And a Remnant is created."

Riku and Mickey looked from her back at the creature.

"So, you mean… That thing is like a collection of all the bad that's happened here?" Mickey asked uncertainly.

"Yes, basically. I'd imagine it's also absorbed all the bad that happened in Hollow Bastion too, since it's so close. I mean, I've never seen or felt a Remnant there, and _that_ place has seen a lot of bad." Melody said, thinking back on her own visits to the wasting castle in the distance. "We're gonna have to find a different way out if that things wandering around here." She mumbled, more to herself then her companions.

Riku narrowed his eyes, trying to make out something on the creature. "Are those hearts in the tubes coming from its neck?" He finally asked, unsure if his eyes were playing tricks on him. He had a sinking feeling they weren't.

Melody glanced at the creature, but nodded almost immediately. "Before this world was ripped apart, and Maleficent moved in to take over, experiments on the heart were carried out both in the castle and this town. Heartless were even manufactured for a brief time. I think because of that, this Remnant collects hearts from all the heartless here, and stores them in those tubes."

"If that's true… We gotta defeat it! We can't just leave all those hearts trapped in there." Mickey said and made to jump out the window. Melody's eyes widened and she quickly grabbed the small king, holding him back.

"You can't! That thing isn't like heartless! You don't just bash it around until it can't stand anymore!" Melody said in a panicked whisper. Riku glared at her.

"Well we can't just let it go with that many hearts!" He growled back to her. Melody gave him a stern look.

"That thing was born ten years ago- and all it's done is fester and feed on the darkness and bad emotions that have been circling this place ever since! You'll both get killed if you just charge in." Melody said, her eyes daring them both to argue. "Besides, do _either_ of you know how to handle a Remnant?" She added, seeing both of them look down dejectedly. She sighed. "Maybe someday we'll be able to do something about it, but right now none of us have what it takes to bring that thing down… ok?"

Riku glanced down at Mickey. The King wore a sad look, his ears even drooping a little. His hands were fisted tightly, but his eyes seemed to show understanding. Riku's own fingers curled into a fist and he looked back up at Melody, and was surprised.

She had already returned her gaze back to the Remnant. Her body was tense, the hand still holding her bow shook every few seconds with how hard she was gripping it, her fingers flexing along the elegant, smooth surface. Her eyes though, showed a deep frustration. As though she understood how helpless he and Mickey felt in that moment.

"Have you tried fighting that thing before?" He heard himself ask, as he watched her closely for a reaction. Melody frowned, looking down at the sill for a moment.

"I have… It didn't end well." Melody mumbled before looking at the two. "I know it's hard to turn away. But trust me when I say that you won't accomplish anything by going after that Remnant now." She said.

A thick silence settled over them. Only the growls from the Remnant echoed around the space. Riku rarely let someone tell him what he could or could not accomplish. That was only something for him to decide, and usually something he wouldn't know until he tried. But seeing her own frustration, and the serious tone of her normally light voice, Riku felt like Melody wasn't exaggerating.

Melody glanced between the two downcast boys before shaking her head twice and smiling. "C'mon now guys. It'll be alright! Look at it this way- that thing is doing all the hard work for us! We won't have to wade through thousands or millions of heartless to release all those hearts! Just one really big Remnant." She said in a hopeful voice. "For now, let's focus on the things we can do! And right now, that means getting to the Castle without drawing that thing's attention." She said.

Mickey and Riku looked at each other, realizing how down they each looked and each chuckled once.

"Gosh, you have a good point, Melody. Thinkin' on things we can't do will only get us stuck." He replied with a smile, and ears perking. "Sounds like you've been out here before, and Riku, didn't you come here a few times for Maleficent? Do you know any other ways out?"

Riku sighed, but figured they both had a point and thought about the handful of times he'd been here. But those times…

"Sorry. When I came here before it was through a passageway. I never really had an interest in exploring this place beyond that." Riku said, setting his chin on a finger in thought. "One time though, it was near the base of the second tower. I remember thinking I saw some kind of passageway under the water there. Could that help?" He asked, looking up at the two. An enlightened look passed over Melody's face and she gasped.

"That's it! The water system for the Castle-town used to connect to a second pump station here!" Melody said excitedly and stood up. "Riku you're a genius! We can just use the old tunnels for the waterway!" She said, giving Riku a big impressed smile. Mickey laughed and patted Riku's shoulder once.

"Great job Riku!" He said with a proud smile. Riku sighed as Melody looked around before declaring the Remnant far enough away for them to move again. Mickey jumped up on the sill, seeming renewed with their new plan now forming.

' _These two are hard to keep up with…'_ he found himself thinking.

 **.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~**

 **And their current adventures in Villain's Vale has come to a close, but never fear! They will return one day!**

 **I'm gonna stop putting times on here when I think I'll get something posted- I seem to keep missing them. Just know this is my main project right now and takes up most of my free time.**

 **Next up we're in the real Hollow Bastion that we all know and love! We have some portals to open, some heartless to kill, and Riku still owes Melody an explanation!**

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 **Might draw out my new Remnant creature...**

 **As always, I'm open to constructive criticism or comments. They brighten my day and keep me going strong! :D**


	5. Hollow Bastion: Open the Door

**Wow has it been a while! School has been keeping me busy, I haven't had any time to spend on this T_T. However the semester is officially over! Which means I get my fun time back! Sorry it has taken so long. I hope you enjoy, and as always I appreciate any comments!**

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 **Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is not mine, despite all my wishing that it was. 3**

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"I thought I heard something."

Three figures froze and looked up through an old storm grate, still half covered with chipped stone pieces.

"Don't be so paranoid, _Squall."_ A light female voice teased. "That creepy dragon is all gone, there's nothing left here."

"I've told you not to call me that Yuffie." The calm voice replied with a sigh and moved closer to the drain cover where the noise had come from. He bent over, looking down through the cracks carefully.

"Did we miss some heartless? I though we cleared them out of this part just yesterday. Even Aerith couldn't sense any by the time we finished…" Yuffie replied and followed the tall man, looking around. But only a moment later the man stood and turned.

"Never mind. You're right. I can't feel them here either." He said. "Let's finish our rounds and come back. If anything is here, that'll give it time to come out."

"If you're sure… Hey! Leon! Wait for me!" The ninja's voice echoed as her footsteps sped across the stony debris after the man, who took little notice as he walked away.

Down below, two figures let out a sigh of relief. The third, who was held between them, finally managed to pry the fingers of the two away from her face so she could breathe again. After taking several big gulps of the smelly air, hazel eyes glared at the other two.

"Were you actually _trying_ to kill me that time?" She grumbled.

The smaller figure rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "Sorry about that, Melody. But Riku and I aren't ready for everyone to know we're back yet…"

Melody raised an eyebrow. "Why not? Leon and his friends are good people. You guys don't have to worry about them." She said. Riku frowned and glanced behind them.

"A lot happened during Sora and Riku's first journey. I still need time to fill them in on what's happened." Mickey explained with a serious look. "Until then, it'd be better if they didn't meet Riku." Melody looked between the two once more but nodded reluctantly.

"If that's the way you two really want it, I guess that's ok. We're going to have to be more careful moving around though." Melody said and looked up in thought. "Maybe we should find another way up. I'm sure there's a few other places we could try…provided they aren't still buried…" She muttered, more to herself. "Riku, what are you looking at?" She asked when she realized he was still focusing back down the waterway they had just trudged through for a good hour or two.

Riku glanced back at her before pointing down the dim tunnel. The shadows there had begun writhing about, and gold orbs were appearing in the darkening shadows at the bend in the tunnel. "We have company." He replied, narrowing his eyes at the growing, moving mass.

"Uhhhg, not again!" Melody groaned as Mickey readied himself. With a sigh, she reached over her shoulder for an arrow, but paused when something caught her eye. A large piece of solid metal piping had collapsed against the wall. However, it hadn't rusted like most of the other metal they had found. It was something that must have been forged strong, and was meant to last. There was a slight bend in it, but that hadn't hindered its length which easily could still have stretched up to fifteen feet.

"Wait up guys!" She called just as Riku and Mickey took a step down towards the Shadows. They both turned back to her. Melody had already looped her bow over her back and was straining to push a large rock, more than half her size. "Let's just get out of here." She said, looking back at them when the boulder finally rolled a few inches away. "We can use this to lift up part of the grate! It's strong enough it should hold up for us to get out."

Mickey looked up at Riku who had glanced back at the Shadows. They were clambering around, but didn't seem to be moving towards them at full speed. Finally, Riku turned his sharp gaze down to Mickey and nodded in agreement. They both released their keyblades and ran over to help her move the large pipe.

"Whoa!" Mickey cried as they all picked it up, the weight nearly pulling him down.

Riku also grunted under the sudden weight as they staggered back into the dirtied water under the grate. "This thing is heavier than it looks." He said as they got it lined up. Melody winced as she looked up to where they would need to wedge the broken tip into.

"We need to move to the right a little more…" She managed to get out, struggling to move under the weight of the metal. They all grimaced as they moved a little more until Melody said they were good. Mickey glanced over his shoulder.

"We gotta hurry! Looks like those heartless noticed us!" Mickey said, his grip shaking a little. Melody and Riku looked back before glancing at each other.

"I'll take the front, I can reach the furthest." Riku said quickly and shifted closer to the opposite end as Mickey. Melody didn't argue, simply shifted her grip as best she could on the pipe.

"Me and my big ideas…" she muttered under her breath. Riku ignored her mumbling and made sure they were still lined up to catch on one of the grate's bars.

"Ready." He said and glanced down to Mickey and Melody who both managed a nod. He glanced back and saw dozens and dozens of brilliant yellow orbs fixating on them. "On my mark then." Riku said and turned to look up. "One, two…" They all took a step back, so they would have a little extra momentum. "Three!" He called and pushed his body forward, hefting the pipe up. There was a loud, echoing crack as it rammed into the other metal. Riku let out a pained groan as the pipe reverberated in his hands painfully.

"Just a little…" Melody strained from somewhere behind him. The silver haired boy took a deep breath and pushed harder, the grate finally moving up about four inches. "Almost there, guys… One more big push."

Riku moved his hands back a little so he had a better grip and more room to push up. "Ready. One, two... three!" He said again and they all gave it one last big push, the grate above creaking up to about a foot open. However, it seemed to groan in protest, causing Riku to look up. The grate was bowing under the weight of the stones above. It wasn't going to hold long.

"King Mickey, you get up first!" Melody said quickly, glancing back down the waterway. Mickey didn't waste the precious seconds they had arguing and quickly vaulted up the pipe, scurrying through the small opening. "Riku-"

"You next." Riku interrupted, glancing back at her. "Just stand clear up there. It's gonna be close." Melody only deliberated a second before pushing herself up the pipe and out of view. Riku glanced back, seeing the frantic clawing of Shadows only feet away now. He called for his keyblade, the weapon appearing just as he released the metal and swung it in an arch, the winds from the sweep pushing several heartless away.

Satisfied that he wouldn't get clawed in the back, he turned and jumped up onto the pipe, and then once more as soon as his feet met the collapsing metal. As he reached for the edge of the hole two hands shot out to grab his arm. A gasp of surprise left him as he was hauled up and out. Crisp, cleaner air hit his face and filled his lungs, which he was grateful for. Riku simply sat where his companions had left him, both of whom had collapsed on either side of him.

It was only after seconds of relief that crashing came from several feet behind him. Though he was curious, Riku didn't have the energy to move at the moment. He could only guess it was the rock and twisted metals falling back over the grate they had just escaped from.

"Seconds to spare…" Melody said with a loud relieved sigh. "That wasn't so bad." Riku let out one soft, sarcastic chuckle as he felt her back leaning on his shoulder. Seconds later he felt Mickey's head rest against his other arm.

"If nearly being crushed to death by boulders while trying to escape an endless tide of heartless isn't so bad, I'd hate to see what is." Riku replied, finally glancing back to the grate they had just escaped through. Or at least, where he thought it was. Now only rock and ruins lay about, a little bit of dust still floating gently back to the ground after the rockslide. Melody waited a few moments for her breathing to return to normal before answering.

"Alright, you got me on that one."

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"It looks like Leon and the others haven't cleared this far yet." Mickey commented, landing on top of a caved in roof and looking around. Shadows and Soldiers were crawling over everything, clawing at rock and overturning rotting wood and furniture in search of anything to sate their endless hunger. Darkballs lazily floated through the air, uninterested in the three newcomers passing by. Melody hummed in agreement as she slid easily down a large slab of rock only a few feet ahead of him.

"It looked like they were heading towards the old Fountain Plaza. I guess Leon decided to start on that side of the town." Melody said while looking around.

Riku paused as he landed on a roof and looked down at the two. Mickey had looked to Melody, agreeing with her. "That probably _is_ the best place to start. If they can get any of those fountains workin' again, they'd have a good water supply."

"And a clean one. Those fountains went through the biggest purification system in the town." The girl replied as she began moving again, leading them closer to the crumbling wall and further from the castle.

"Really? I woulda figured the castle would have the biggest." The King commented as he and Riku slowly followed.

Melody pulled an arrow from her quiver and notched it, aiming for a few heartless gathering in front of them. "Technically it does…or did. The fountain was part of the same system as the castle. That's one of the reasons the waterway beneath it is so huge." She explained, sidestepping an attack from a grumpy darkball. Riku made a swipe at it, slicing it in two as it flew past. A heart burst from the dark mass, floating up into the sky.

Mickey raised an eyebrow, chuckling once. "Gee, Melody. You seem to know a lot about this place." Melody scratched the back of her head sheepishly and turned, giving him a smile.

"Back before it was destroyed, I knew someone who studied at the castle. She did a report on the waterways all over the town one time. She must have read it to me a hundred times while she was working on it." She explained.

"So, you lived here? I thought you would have lived with that witch you work for." Riku said as he came up next to her. Melody glanced at Riku before her smile turned almost bitter. She pushed a few strands of hair from her face as she thought over her next words.

"Well, yeah. Except for classes, I was always here. This place was like a second home to me…" She said, looking around at the long-destroyed town. Riku looked around as well. He had only been in this world for a few months. During that time however, he had never known there was still a town shrouded by fog and smoke. He'd never thought that someone else may have lived there- at least not in such recent times.

' _I never thought about anything when I was here. I finally got to see another world…but I was so focused on beating Sora…'_ Riku's thought trailed off while he looked at the horrible state of the buildings they passed.

"It _is_ a little hard to see the town like this." Mickey said, his ears dropping a few inches. "It really was a special place." Riku looked down between himself and Melody at the mouse, only mildly surprised the king knew this place before it was destroyed too. If someone told him the little king had been to every world that ever existed, he would probably believe it.

"Oh. We're here." exclaimed Melody. Riku and Mickey both turned their gazes in the direction she was pointing.

A once tall, black gate was folded in on itself, leaving an opening into the front yard. The grass and flowers had long since perished leaving only black and grey soil. Even with the roof caved in and the left end crumbling away, it was easy to tell the building had been the biggest one in the district. It looked like it had been three stories tall, and the length of at least four of the houses they had been passing to get here. The once white marble was scorched and charred. It was a surprise that the heavy wooden doors to the building hadn't rotted away yet, though it had deep scratch marks along it and looked to have been burned recently.

"Jeez, this place has really gone to the dumps." Melody said lightly and slunk in around the twisted gate. Mickey looked up at Riku who seemed weary about the less than solid structure but cautiously followed.

"You don't seem too fazed by how run down it is." Riku said, watching her push gently on the door.

"I came here a few times over the years. It was a bit tricky since it was so toxic this far below the castle though." The girl explained as she pushed a little harder on the door. "Sulo usually caught me before I got too close." She added, straining on the heavy door. Finally, it slowly creaked up, banging loudly when it hit the wall inside. Mickey and Riku peeked in from either side of Melody.

Shafts of light that managed to get through the floors above made small patches on the floor, lighting the otherwise dark interior. The remains of rotted wood littered the floors and dust had settled on every surface.

The two boys glanced at Melody who looked between them before swallowing and taking the first step in. Her steps echoed loudly around the building, bouncing off the dirtied tiles of the floors and ceiling. Riku and Mickey looked at each.

"I don't know about this Mickey." Riku said quietly. Mickey chuckled and looked up at the silver haired boy knowingly.

"Riku, when you were going to leave your island on a raft, were you sure everything would be ok?" the king asked. After a few seconds Riku shook his head. "Sometimes you just have to keep going, even if you can't see the path." Mickey said, looking into the dusty foyer. "Neither of us know much about this Organization that was workin' in Castle Oblivion. And to be honest, I'm still a little worried about Sora. She seems so sure he'll wake up though, and that we can find this Organization XIII. Right now, Melody's our raft. Our best option is to let her carry us until we can see a path again." He turned to follow Melody in, beginning to look around. He smiled back to Riku, whose eyes had widened as he listened to Mickey speak. "I know you have to be more guarded now Riku, considering all that's happened. But if you look real close, I think you'll see Melody is someone you don't need to worry about." The small king motioned for the boy to follow.

' _When did I become so wary?'_ Riku thought as Mickey's words sank in. ' _I used to thrive on the unknown- I spent hours wondering what was beyond the same old horizon I saw every day.'_ He took a deep breath, his eyes hardening with resolve and he took his first steps into the old building. With every step he took, his senses were assaulted with new scents and odd sensations. ' _I'm beyond that horizon now. I can't just stop.'_

Many of the scents were magic based, and very old. There was the barest hint of a difference between some of them, but many more just bled together into an overwhelming odor. ' _I wonder if someday I'll be able to tell the difference between all these smells.'_ Riku found himself hoping so, he wasn't sure he could stand the powerful stenches assaulting him for the rest of his life. As he glanced down the first hall an odd feeling of weightlessness passed through him. He could feel the traces left behind from what he could only think of as hearts. Feelings and memories of the people who had called this place home, had fought for it, and lost it. Riku shivered as the sensations crawled through him.

"Riku! King Mickey! Over here!" Melody's voice called. Mickey looked in the direction the voice came from, and began walking towards the back of the foyer. Riku trailed after him, glancing over his shoulder as he went.

Melody had disappeared through a hole in the wall that led into a room on the backside of the building. When the two passed through, they realized the hole was, at one point, just a door. However, the door was now half unhinged, and rested flat against the wall with deep scars marring its surface. This room was made a little brighter, by parts of the back wall missing. Stones littered the floor, just as they had in the rest of the building, but the furniture here was a little more intact than they had seen so far. A large desk half way to the back wall was broken into several pieces, the papers that once sat on or in it scattered about. There were several large area rugs throughout the room, all of which were a muddied gray and the hems beginning to unravel.

Vines at some point had crawled in through the large holes on the wall, and had stretched out over the bookcases and displays that still held dusty books and objects. Melody was by the wall far to the left of the doorway, struggling with a long piece of timber, that looked like it was once supporting the floor above. Riku's gaze quickly moved up, and a small wave of relief washed over him to see part of the ceiling had already collapsed above where she now stood. Along the rest of the ceiling there were still a few other support beams left to hold up the sagging floor above. At least it wouldn't come down on them while they worked. That was all they needed on this trip here- one of them squished flat under half a building.

"It's behind here!" The girl said through gritted teeth as she heaved on the long piece of wood again. Behind the debris, a silvery purple could be seen. Despite only a small part of the frame being visible, the amount of detail from every inch of whatever the doorway was made of was immense and glowed very softly.

' _That door…it seems familiar…'_ Riku thought as he followed Mickey over to the girl. He reached out to grab the beam, his eyes still scanning the door. ' _Where have I seen this before?'_

"Riku, careful!" Mickey's shrill voice broke through his trance and the silver haired boy shook his head a few times. A large rock had tumbled away from the door as the two were pushing on the wooden beam, missing him only by mere inches.

"Right. Sorry about that." He muttered and hurriedly help them push the beam away. Through their combined effort, it finally moved with a loud creak and crashed to the side, creating a loud thud that echoed throughout the building. A large cloud of dust was kicked up, pulling a loud sneeze from Melody. She sniffed and turned away from the floating dust mass, waving her hand about her face to clear the dust away from her.

"Oh, that _reeks!_ " Melody gasped and nearly tripped over a large slab of stone trying to get away from the disturbingly nasty smelling dust cloud. Riku and Mickey had pulled their hoods over their faces, the magic from the cloak blocking out the odors.

"What did you expect from over ten years of dirt and rot?" Riku asked as she placed a hand on his shoulder to steady herself. He raised an eyebrow as she leaned over and coughed a few good times. "That's a little overdramatic, don't you think?"

"Say that…without…your cloak…" Melody said through taking big gulps of fresher air. He rolled his eyes and looked up at the now mostly visible door, as Mickey tried to hide a laugh behind his hand.

Riku crossed his arms as he analyzed the door in front of them. ' _Where did I see this before?'_ He thought, but his memory felt hazy as he searched for the door in his memories.

The warmth from Melody's hand disappeared, pulling him from his thoughts and his eyes moved around the room automatically, searching for her. She had walked several feet from him, her journal now resting in her hands. She was kneeling next to Mickey and both looked serious.

"…So if you use too much of the Gravera magic, it could end up destroying the door and just creating a black hole. See?" She explained, pointing to something on the journal page in her hand. Mickey nodded, his eyes scanning the paper.

"I've been usin' doors and gateways for a long time, but I didn't know it was so specific." Mickey said with a tilt of his head.

"That's because your keyblade has probably been doing all this for you on its own. But the world we're trying to connect to is very different. It's really well-guarded and some even consider it sacred." Melody explained while turning to look back at the door. "There are no normal or natural rifts around the world that outsiders can slip in through. The only way in or out is through doors like this. What we're doing was at one point, the only way gateways could be opened."

"Seems pretty complicated." Riku said, leaning down to look over Mickey's shoulder. The diagram and ancient writings elegantly decorating the paper were almost completely foreign to him. A few symbols he could make out as aero, and another looked similar to a gravity spell, but not much beyond that made sense.

Melody giggled, nodding in agreement. "Magic makes everything seem complicated, despite popular belief." She looked up at the silver haired boy. "But you don't have to worry about that this time. All I need you to do is use your keyblade to unlock the path once it's connected, ok?"

Riku nodded, watching Melody walk over to the door, kicking rocks and debris away from the glowing door. "You two ready?"

Riku and Mickey glanced at each other and nodded once before turning back to her.

Mickey took a deep breath, pocketing the paper Melody had given him and summoned his keyblade. As he held it out in front of his small body, he closed his eyes and his breath evened. Melody and Riku watched as the magic slowly wove its way around his blade. Black bubbles of gravera, whisps of wind, even some static danced from Mickey's hands down the length of the blade, slowly building. As the effects along the blade began to move in slow motion, Melody took a deep breath and turned to the door.

She cupped her left hand where the Witch's insignia began burning brightly and started whispering so softly, the actual words were lost to Riku. He watched as her fingers moved from the glove through the air, a line of purple following.

Only seconds passed before the power circling Mickey's keyblade jumped from the weapon towards the door, crackling loudly as it slammed into the enchanted wood. Melody winced as some of the magic bounced back in her direction, but her green-gold gaze did not shift from the door.

Riku's muscles tensed, but he refused to let himself move. Melody had not let the magic lashing out distract her, so he would not let it distract him either. He glanced in the other direction, towards Mickey to see the small King still concentrating intently, though his grip was much tighter now on his blade. He frowned, but turned his focus back to the door, waiting for the gate to connect.

Seconds ticked by, turning into minutes, until it was nearly an hour later.

Just as Riku was wondering if this was even going to work, the magic calmed, allowing itself to be drawn into the door. As it flowed, a keyhole slowly began to form out of the magic. Riku narrowed his eyes, the scents dancing around his nose somehow drawing him towards the proper place to focus his keyblade. As light began pouring from the door, Riku spun his keyblade around once, before pointing it at the keyhole. As he willed the door to open, a strong, solid beam of light shot from the tip of Soul Eater. The light was strong and solid, and as it entered the keyhole, the rest of the magic was dragged in and an echoing click filled the air.

As the air calmed and silence fell upon them, the three looked at the door for a long moment. Melody finally broke the silence with a relieved sigh.

"Phew! That was great!" She said happily and leaned against a nearby rock. "It's so much easier when I'm not the only one!" She turned and smiled at them, her breathing still labored. "You guys did amazing! Thank you so much! I owe you two big time."

Mickey had knelt and was panting as well, but smiled happily. "Your welcome, Melody. That's what friends are for!" Despite being out of breath, he seemed excited. Riku had to admit he also felt a rush. His fingers still tingled where they were wrapped around his weapon's handle and his heart was pounding loudly in his ears. He had never opened a door like this before, the experience was different than when he was using darkness to rip open pathways. He could have sworn he had felt the world's heart, for just an instant as the door unlocked. Being able to feel such a connection, for even an instant…

"I should be thanking _you_ Melody. I haven't pushed myself like this in ages. I realized I may have started to rest on what I already knew, instead of trying new things." Mickey said after he was able to calm his heart. Smiling through the growing blush on her face, Melody nodded to him.

"Then I'm glad we were able to help each other!"

There was a loud creak from the door and they all jumped, backing up a few feet. Melody smiled nervously to the two. "I guess you two are gonna get to meet Witch Thera's second in command." Riku narrowed his eyes on the girl who was now fidgeting with her clothes and hair, her eyes dulled with nerves. She must have felt his stare because it only took a few seconds for her to look up at him. She jumped when she met his suspicious glare and waved her hands about. "She's not a bad person, I swear! So stop giving me that look!" Riku didn't turn away as she squirmed under his sudden attention. "Alright, alright! She's not bad, but she can be really scary, ok? Just don't talk back to her, be polite, and she probably won't give you any grief."

Mickey looked back and forth between the two as they spoke and was about to step in when another sound came from the door. This time there was a click as the door was opened from the other side. Melody immediately turned to face the door, her back straightening and arms going ridged at her side.

The woman who stepped through the doorway was tall, several inches taller than Riku was. Her red eyes were sharp and calculating as they glanced over him, making his blood run cold. Her pale blonde hair was straight and neat. It was very short in the back, gradually lengthening and nearly reaching her shoulders around her face. Her gray and purple uniform was militarian, skirt falling to just above her knees, and heeled boots clicked ominously with every step she took. Her body was thin and long, yet the strength radiating from every inch of her being could not be denied. Her mere presence demanded obedience.

Her eyes moved smoothly over Riku to Mickey, who she also showed little interest in. Her lips finally twitched into a frown as her gaze moved to Melody. "You're late." She stated, coolly. Melody pouted and kicked at the ground once, shoulders sagging only slightly.

"Sorry, some things came up. We got here as soon as we could…" As Melody spoke, the woman brushed passed her, looking around the room.

"I see you also haven't secured the building." She said, not seeming to hear Melody's explanation. "You should take the security of our entry points seriously, Melody. You _are_ supposed to be the First Apprentice." The auburn-haired girl sighed and looked down. Riku and Mickey watched quietly as the woman walked around, both now nervous about drawing the strict woman's attention. However, they were not so lucky to escape being noticed. Melody glanced back and smiled when her eyes moved over the two before she turned and tried catching the woman's attention.

"Sulo! I need to introduce you to the guys that helped me unlock the door!" Melody grabbed Riku and Mickey's hands and hulled them towards Sulo, despite both of them digging their heels into the cracked floors. "This is King Mickey and Riku." She said, turning to each one respectively. "They're both really strong! It would have taken forever for me to open the door if I was by myself." She explained with a hopeful smile. Both boys went ridged as Sulo's gaze slowly moved back to them, analyzing the two once more.

She let out an almost disappointed sigh after looking them over and turned away, rubbing her temple with one hand. Riku felt his left eye twitch at the strange woman's second dismissal. He frowned and took a step forward, mouth already opening. Mickey grabbed Riku's leg in an attempt to stop him from moving further. "Hang on, Riku! Don't let her antagonize you!" Mickey said as loud as he dared.

"But Mickey…" Riku ground out, glaring at the statuesque woman. _'This lady doesn't even know us! What gives her the right…'_ He thought, fists clenching and unclenching.

"It's true Sulo! King Mickey knows so much about magic and the worlds! And Riku is really strong and reliable! Not to mention they're both excellent keyblade wielders!" Melody said seriously. "You shouldn't be so mean to them- they both worked really hard for us!" She finished, stomping her foot for good measure.

Silence stretched out across the room as the older woman fixed her ruby gaze on Melody. Riku heard the very audible gulp that came from the auburn-haired girl as the moments ticked past. The tension building around the room was thick and made breathing difficult for Riku. He could even feel the tension building in Mickey, who normally seemed so good under pressure.

Finally, a small smile spread across Sulo's lips. "I see. Then I have been quite rude, haven't I?" Cold sweat dripped from all three of them as her cool sweet words dripped over them.

' _She's scarier when she smiles…'_ Riku thought.

"I am Sulo, Grand Master under the World Teachings and head of security for the Temple World Amaurëa." She said, facing them fully and bowing just slightly at the waist. "On behalf of Celestial Witch Thera, I thank you for your assistance."

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 **Perhaps not the most exciting chapter, but it had to be added for later.**

 **We're wrapping up this visit to Hollow Bastion in the next chapter, as well as meeting their newest enemy in black coats!**

 **Stay tuned- I promise it will be out quicker than this last chapter was!**

 **Thank you all!**


	6. Hollow Bastion: The New Enemy Arrives

**This chapter came out pretty quick! I had a lot of fun writing this one. Hope everyone enjoys it!**

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 **Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts and all its amazingness is not mine.**

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"Step lightly, girl." The cold voice of the woman, Sulo, called, echoing ominously through the crumbling building of the Old Academy. Riku and Mickey tensed from where they stood near the door they had opened only a half hour ago. Melody's voice replied quickly and they could hear her steps from above, much lighter than the older woman's as she scurried after her superior.

Riku chuckled once. "She's actually taking lighter steps." He said, almost in disbelief. Mickey nodded as his ears twitched, his eyes trained on the ceiling.

"It seems like she doesn't know the difference between figurative and literal speech…" He replied. There was a loud hiss from above, followed by a familiar crackling that they had heard several times already.

"I can't believe that Sulo said we couldn't help. Aren't they just setting up a barrier?" Riku asked. Something about this lady still didn't sit right with him, and he was sure it wasn't just the cold dismissal she gave them. She seemed almost devoid of emotion. Well, except for maybe annoyance. It had even briefly crossed his mind that she may be a heartless in disguise. There was a problem with this theory though.

Since he had left that weird Castle, Riku had been assaulted by new and strange scents. Some he could figure out, but many more he couldn't. This woman named Sulo gave off an odd scent, one that he still wasn't able to explain. It was one of the reasons he had thought of her as a possible heartless.

Yet Melody seemed unfazed by the cold and aloof attitude. Aside from standing up for them when Sulo first arrived, she seemed fine following the short and direct orders given. Mickey, while also unsure of the woman, had already confirmed she was human.

"It didn't seem like she trusted us. It's hard to believe she and Melody work for the same person, even thought they're so different." Mickey replied.

Before Riku could respond, Sulo walked back into the room, her eyes scanning the back wall that was crumbling away. Just like earlier, she didn't seem interested in the two boys now sitting near the door. Her eyes focused only on the wall, as though she were taking it apart piece by piece with her gaze alone.

Melody came in only a few seconds later with a sigh, rolling her left shoulder a few times. "Finally…" she muttered, looking quite drained.

"Your magic is still lacking control." Sulo said, placing a hand over the empty space from a destroyed window. A soft glow rolled from her hand, stretching up over the space. Riku saw Melody biting her lip as she forced her body to straighten back into an attention pose. For once, he felt a little bad for her. "You were supposed to have been using your free time to further your studies in magic. However, based on your performance upstairs it looks as though you haven't made even a little progress." She continued, satisfied when a ripple of light moved away from her hand along the empty space and continued along the wall. "Your protective charm nearly backfired and destroyed a corner of the building. You're lucky nothing collapsed."

Melody frowned but bowed to the woman who had yet to look back at her. "Forgive me, Sulo. I should have been working harder."

"It appears your two friends are at least capable of guarding a door. Perhaps they are not quite as incompetent as they first appeared." Sulo continued, glancing only briefly at the two boys. "It seems everything is protected enough now. You should be able to use this place to rest if needed." She said and walked back towards the silvery door.

Mickey had wrapped his arms around Riku's leg, holding him in place as she brushed past them. She stopped and looked back to Melody. "I will send word to the moogle as well- one of them should show up here in the next couple days." She said, her eyes narrowing on Melody. "Witch Thera will have more work for you in the next few days. Consider it remedial lessons."

Melody groaned. " _More_ work? Seriously…?"

Sulo's ruby eyes narrowed on her. "What was that?" Melody bit her cheek and went ridged again. Her tired eyes hardened as she met Sulo's stare.

"Nothing ma'am." She said, and even Riku could tell it was with forced confidence. The woman stared only a few seconds longer before turning and pulling the door open with ease. Only when the resounding click of the door closing echoed around the tense room did Melody let out a loud sound between a groan and a scream, before sinking to her knees. "So tired!"

Mickey jogged over and patted her shoulder gently. "You ok, Melody?" He asked worriedly. The poor girl was rather pale, her skin cool to the touch and coated with a thin sheen of sweat. She looked over at him with tired eyes but was smiling while Riku walked over to her as well.

"I'm ok. Like she said- I'm still bad with magic. I get drained to easily…" Melody replied, a sad smile still fixed on her face.

"That woman treats you like shit. How do you put up with it?" Riku asked, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall next to her. Surprise crossed her features as she looked up at him.

"Who, Sulo? She doesn't treat me bad… does she?" She looked between him and Mickey, who scratched the back of his head and looked away. "I never saw it that way…" Melody said, looking over the back wall in thought. "Sulo's been by Witch Thera's side longer than anyone can remember. And she's really strong- believe me, she can back up what she says. I think because of that, she has high standards for everyone around her. Besides," She turned and looked between the two with a smile. "I think she's nice, deep down. I mean, she set up this strong barrier for us so we have a safe place to stay." A look of realization lit up her eyes and she looked up at Riku with a grin. "Guess she's a little like you then!"

"Wha...Like…I… We are _not_ like each other at all!" Riku said, flabbergasted by the accusation. Mickey and Melody giggled to each other as Riku tried to get past Melody's comparison. "Mickey! Don't encourage her!"

"She might just have a point. You _do_ seem pretty tough all the time. But I know your actually a good person, Riku." Mickey replied. Riku grumbled as the two agreed. In that moment he decided if she was still around when he woke up, he was _not_ leaving Melody alone with Sora. If she was like this with Mickey, he couldn't even imagine how diabolic she would be with his oldest friend.

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.

"I'm telling you, Witch Thera is _nothing_ like Sulo." Melody said with a sigh and looked back at Riku and Mickey who were sparring. "If anything, Witch Thera comes across more as spacey than serious."

They had long left the Old Academy grounds and were now occupying a ledge of the castle, high enough not to be seen by the restoration team below. Melody was sitting with her legs hanging over the edge, slowly consuming an ether. As she did, Riku and Mickey exchanged blows several feet back. Every other blow dealt, one of them would ask the girl something about her occupation or cold acquaintance. Apparently, Riku was still a little upset that she had compared him to Sulo.

Mickey felt a bead of sweat roll down his face as Riku glared at the girl, who stubbornly stuck by her words. "Does she do anything besides guarding the Celestial Witch, Melody?" Mickey asked, drawing her attention. Melody smiled and nodded.

"Sulo's biggest job aside from guarding Witch Thera is actually dispatching Remnants, like the one we saw in that town outside Hollow Bastion." Melody explained with a hint of pride. "Like I said earlier, Remnants are tricky to take down since they are essentially created from memories. But one of Sulo's specialties is locating weaknesses, which means she can figure out at a glance what the Remnant was born from and what it takes to bring it down. She single-handedly heals worlds." Melody sighed wistfully and leaned back on her hands. "I hope I can be that good someday."

Riku rolled his eyes and sat down next to her, looking out at the sun beginning to set on the town and castle. "You're already good." He said with a dark bite in his words. "You're way ahead of me or Sora anyway…" Mickey sat down next to Riku and patted his arm.

"Well sure she is, Riku. Melody's been training and out traveling for years, right?" He said, leaning over to look at Melody who sat up and nodded.

"Right! I just have a lot of practical experience. But you have way more raw talent than me- It's hard to believe that you've only been fighting in real battles for a few months." Melody said encouragingly. She seemed to remember something though and narrowed her eyes, leaning in class to his face. "However, that 'raw talent' doesn't explain why you broke my rule and tried ripping open a path when we were coming here." Her eyes filled with suspicion as she eyed him. Riku met her gaze, but felt sweat begin to bead along his brow. He had been hoping she'd forgotten that detail.

Riku nervously turned to look away, only to be met by Mickey's big, curious eyes also looking up at him. Riku quickly faced forward, opting not to look at either of them. Perhaps he could try and make out Leon and his comrades in the mess below…

"Riku…" Two voices said warningly from his sides. The silverette sighed and closed his eyes. Even then, he could still feel their gazes on him, practically burning holes through his head.

"I don't know!" he finally said in a loud, frustrated tone. He slowly opened his eyes, watching his fingers curl into fists in front of him. "I thought I saw Hollow Bastion go by, and I wondered why you weren't stopping. Then, suddenly all this doubt and anger started pouring into me. I remembered when Maleficent first found me and offered to help…and I just got angrier." Riku's shoulders slumped as he spoke and his head bowed. "Next thing I knew, you two were being pulled through a dark portal."

Melody and Mickey frowned, the small King patting Riku's arm again. "Does that mean…?" the mouse started, but couldn't seem to find the words to finish. Melody raised an eyebrow, not too sure where he was going with his question.

Riku's eyes narrowed on his fisted hands. "I…I don't _think_ it was Ansem. At first I did, but now… it didn't feel the same as it did when he first took over me." Mickey sighed in relief but Melody frowned in confusion.

"Ansem?" the girl asked tentatively. Mickey looked around Riku once more to meet Melody's eyes.

"He was a really bad heartless that possessed Riku a few weeks ago. He's been a part of Riku ever since. We were able to defeat him in Castle Oblivion but… he's now sleeping deep inside Riku's heart." He explained, glossing over the details as he went. Mickey looked up at Riku. ' _If she wants to know any more, it'll have to come from Riku, himself. It is his story after all…'_

Melody looked even more confused though. "You're sure this guy's name was Ansem?" she asked after a moment. Riku and Mickey both looked at her oddly.

"Of course we're sure his name was Ansem." Riku replied after a silent moment.

Melody still looked thoroughly confused though. "You know…never mind. It's probably a different person anyway…." She said, mostly to herself. She looked back out over the town in thought, missing Mickey's eyes narrow on her with realization. ' _That's right…the leader here, before it was destroyed… His name was Ansem...Ansem the Wise…Why did I forget that?'_

"Maybe it really was him though. I don't know where else that darkness and power came from…" Riku said, breaking the two from their thoughts. Melody let out a soft laugh after a few seconds.

"That darkness didn't come from anywhere Riku." She said. Riku finally turned his eyes from his lap to her in confusion. "The way I see it, someone's in a deep sleep inside you, right?" She paused only long enough for Riku to nod before continuing. "Just because the person is asleep doesn't mean their power is. All that power, or darkness, or whatever this man once controlled didn't go anywhere. It's still inside you, it just doesn't have a master anymore." Riku and Mickey both gave her a look of enlightenment as her words slowly sank in. "I guess this means I can't blame you for what happened. Bummer…" She said sarcastically and cupped her cheek with a sigh.

"How did you figure that out?" Mickey asked. Melody shrugged and looked down in embarrassment.

"Things just come to me sometimes. I can't really explain why…" She mumbled nervously while running a hand over her skirts. "More importantly- Riku, you need to start building up a resistance to darkness and get some practical experience of your own. You need to show that dark energy inside that _you_ are in charge! Not it!" Turning back to face him, Melody fisted her hands in determination. Riku leaned back from her suddenly loud declaration.

"Uh…Ok?" He replied, unsure how to respond to her sudden energy burst. Mickey laughed once from his other side.

"That's right! You need to prove you're the new master, Riku! That energy is _yours_ now." Mickey said with confidence. "And if anything comes up, I'll be right here to help!"

"Me too!" Melody chimed in. "As long as we're connected, the three of us can overcome anything! Right?" She added with a grin. Riku was left wide-eyed as he looked between the two. Despite everything he had done, he still somehow had people willing to stand by him as friends. He laughed once, thinking they both reminded him of Sora in that moment. Smiling as they simplified the world around them, and offering a helping hand to even someone like him…

"I can't win against your type, can I?" He said with another laugh, confusing the two. He just shook his head and looked up at the sun, resting along the horizon now. "It's nothing you guys need to worry about."

Melody tilted her head, leaning over to look at him closer. Mickey smiled, at the two before looking down at the town, now bathed in a warm light, not unlike Twilight Town often was.

His eyes widened as they landed on a small figure, down near the base of the castle. His blood ran cold and his heart pounded loudly in his ears. The figure wore a black coat. The same black coat that he had seen on their enemies in Castle Oblivion, the same coat he and Riku now wore. In that instant, the figure seemed to sense the King's gaze and lifted its head. Though the hood hid the person's face, Mickey knew whoever was under that cloak was staring straight at him. Mickey let out a gasp as the figure turned sharply and began walking away from the castle.

Melody and Riku turned to look at the King in surprise. "What's wrong?" Riku asked, following Mickey's eyes downward. He squinted as he caught sight of the figure and also gasped as he recognized the coat. The Organization was in Hollow Bastion.

"After him!" Mickey yelled, his small body springing into action, keyblade returning to his grasp as he leapt off the ledge.

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.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

.

Riku panted as he and Melody struggled to catch up to Mickey. Only moments ago, he had sprung from their perch on the castle, chasing after the man in the cloak. He had leapt over crumbling houses and ran along the roofs with ease. Quicker than he or Melody could comprehend. Even sothe duo had followed the King, though they were a little slower in coming down from the Castle.

"Riku! He's heading towards the old fountains! Leon was heading this way too, remember?!" Melody called as the two ran along the broken streets of town. Riku frowned and slid to a stop, surprising Melody, who nearly ran into him. "What's up with slamming on the brakes?"

"You said they were probably staying at the fountain, right? Do you know another way around that won't take us off course?" Riku asked, his voice half an octave deeper and his eyes hard. Melody was surprised by the sudden change in his demeanor, and shivered at the coldness in his voice- she hadn't heard that since the first time they spoke. She looked around where they now stood, the gears in her head turning as she tried to remember this area as it had been before.

"If we cut over towards the wall now, and then pick back up their trail from there, we should be able to avoid the immediate area around the fountains." Melody said, pointing towards the crumbling wall. "Since we're up on top of all these buildings though, we might be easier to spot if those guys are out looking." She added, looking back to Riku.

He deliberated only a second before nodding. "Lead the way. I think I have a way to find Mickey once we're up higher anyway." He said. Melody nodded and turned to her right, jumping up onto a rock ledge before running up a broken support beam from an old house.

' _We're coming, Mickey! Don't do anything reckless until we get there.'_ Riku thought as he took off after the auburn-haired girl.

Gradually, Melody moved them up onto the tops of the roofs and collapsed buildings. As they moved up and closer to the wall, Riku began forcing himself to take in deeper breaths. Scents assaulted his nose and made his eyes water from the overwhelming rotten scent. But beneath that, he could just barely make out other scents. Personal scents, like he had smelled in Castle Oblivion. He had to find Mickey's. He had been around the small King long enough now, he should be able to find him.

Melody finally stopped by the remains of a chimney and crouched down, Riku following suit. As she looked around, he closed his eyes, forcing all his senses to only focus on the smells and feelings drifting in the air. He could barely hear Melody when she broke the silence, he was concentrating so hard.

"We should be ok from here. With the sun nearly down, we actually might not have to worry about being spotted." When there was no response, Melody turned to check on Riku. He had knelt down right next to her, his shoulder nearly brushing hers which surprised her. His eyes were closed, and there was a slight crease in his brow. She watched as he breathed slowly, concentration evident. Seconds ticked by like hours before his eyes slowly opened and his head turned sharply.

"They went that way." Riku said with confidence. Melody watched as he stood and began jogging across the roofs. He paused several yards away and turned. "Come on, Melody! We need to hurry!" He called as loud as he dared. Melody blushed as she realized she had spaced out and shook her head.

' _Don't lose it now, Melody! You need to stay focused…'_ She thought and slapped her cheeks twice. Her eyes sharpened again and she followed after Riku. "Sorry! Won't happen again!" She called as she leapt across the buildings towards him.

The two were careful as they crossed close to the back of the Fountain Plaza, but Riku refused to slow down too much. He didn't feel comfortable leaving Mickey on his own, despite knowing the King could take care of himself. This Organization was strong, and he still had no idea what their true objective was.

"Be ready, Riku!" Melody suddenly said from his side. "Something doesn't feel right."

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"Hold it!" Mickey cried as he slammed his keyblade down, aiming for the stranger's shoulder. The man sprinted suddenly, just getting out of reach and leaving Mickey's attack to strike the hard stone they now stood on. Mickey returned to his fighting stance, seeing the man had stopped running and now simply stood watching him.

"So, you are the infamous King Mickey." A deep voice said from underneath the hood. "Imagine my surprise when I came seeking confirmation that this castle was relieved of that pitiful faerie's influence, only to find the oddest trio making themselves comfortable in its shadow. A small King, a Witch's apprentice, and a boy once chosen by the keyblade. Tell me, has he given in yet to that gnawing darkness eating away at him?"

Mickey's eyes narrowed as he beat his ire down from the man's taunting words. He knew better than to rise to such bait. "You seem to know an awful lot about us." The man simply laughed and waved a hand through the air as he spoke.

"We at Organization XIII always make a point to know our opponents. And with Sora now out of the way, that leaves you and the rejected one." Mickey swung his keyblade in a wide arch, forcing the man back several paces.

"Riku was not rejected by anything! He wields a keyblade, even now." Mickey said, falling back into his starting stance. "He's stronger than you know. And Sora is not gone for good." He said defiantly. "I know that someday Sora _will_ come back!"

The man scoffed and as he answered, he slowly lifted a hand and tossed his hood back. "Oh, I doubt that, King." He said, brilliant ember eyes shining as he spoke. His silvery grey hair blew gently as it fell out from under his hood and around his shoulders. "We have gone to great lengths to assure he will not be a problem." Mickey's eyes widened as he took in the man's appearance.

At first glance, he seemed a lot like Ansem. However, this man's hair was a bit wilder, and his skin several shades lighter. His eyes though, is what gave the small King pause. Past the sharp, analytical gaze, there was something that seemed almost…sad.

"Who are you? You can't be Ansem." Mickey said, tightening his stance and pulling his focus back. The man shook his head, obviously amused by the accusation.

"Right you are little King. I am not the man you call Ansem. Not quite anyway." He said. "Unfortunately, that's about all the time I have to play with you." He said. He held his hands out, and long beams of red energy emerged.

Before Mickey could blink, the man had closed the distance and shoved Mickey back. The small King barely managed to get his keyblade up in time, and as red static danced along the metal and stung his hands, he was glad he was able to block as much as he did. Wind picked up around the two as Mickey returned the blow. The man brought the strange light blades up and blocked this time, sending another static pulse through Mickey's blade and up his arms.

He winced before he somersaulted over the person's head, landing a few feet away and swiping his blade to the side. "Sparkra!" He said in a strong voice, causing large orbs of sparking yellow light to appear and fly towards their target. However, the man was fast. He dodged the orbs with apparent ease before drawing his blades in front of his body and charging.

Moments ticked by as the two continued their battle, dealing blows and demolishing buildings that got in the way.

They forced each other back several feet with a particularly hard exchange, causing the cloaked man to pause. His sharp eyes watched Mickey panting while returning to his starting stance. His eyes moved beyond the King then and he smirked, blades disappearing back up into his hands.

"This is over." He said, puzzling the mouse.

"Not yet! You still have a lot of explaining to do!" Mickey half-yelled. His body though, was beginning to protest. He had been fighting continuously near his limit for the length of the entire battle. A voice from deep inside was telling him he couldn't stop yet, though. He _had_ to keep going.

"Oh, but it is. You see, you and Sora have the same weakness." He said and his arms straightened, coming up parallel with the ground. His whole body floated nearly a foot off the ground as the wind picked up. Mickey squinted against the sudden force and dug his keyblade down into the rock, anchoring himself down.

' _Weakness? What is he talkin' about?'_ Mickey thought as he watched for some kind of sign of an attack. He did not have to wait long.

Black and ember tendrils began mixing with the gusts of wind, darkening the sky and surrounding area so even buildings were barely visible.

"Mickey!" The small King stiffened and his blood ran cold as he understood the man's warning. Riku's voice was too close, he hadn't even heard them approaching. He couldn't stop himself from looking back over his shoulder. A good twenty feet away, Riku and Melody came up over a small rise, keyblade and bow already out and at the ready. But just as they came fully into view, small points or that red light from earlier began doting the darkened sky like stars.

"Go back! Don't come this way!" Mickey called frantically, but it was too late. Before his warning had completely left his mouth, there was a flash of red and silver light.

.

Riku's eyes widened as he slid to a stop, weapon half way up. Melody was less than a foot behind him, an arrow already notched and raised. Hundreds of tiny red lights seemed to surround them suddenly, from seemingly out of thin air. Energy sparked around them and Riku could smell the intense magic that circled around the whole area. And the source- the man Mickey had been chasing.

His eyes were about to move from Mickey to the cloaked figure, but the lights suddenly intensified and time felt as though it slowed, though his sense told him no time spell had been cast. The light blinded him to the man, and then Mickey, whose mouth was open but no words reached him. Riku watched as the points of light elongated all at once, forming thin blades. And every last one was aimed directly at them. Aside from those blades, everything else was engulfed in black.

Riku felt as though his breath had stopped as they all began rocketing forward. Was this it? There was no way they could avoid something of this magnitude. He doubted even Melody or Mickey could fend this off. He felt something stir in him, similar to when they had been in the Lanes Between. It clawed at his mind and body, as a prisoner would be trying to escape his cell.

But then, something strange happened. He heard Melody gasp and felt her arm grab his, hauling him back only inches. As he was moved, an even brighter light- one that was pink and green and gold- encircled them. The magic appeared almost like feathery wings. He felt sharp pricks of pain throughout his body, and large gust of wind pounded into him and Melody, throwing them through the air and several feet back.

Rock and unforgiving earth slide against his back and side as his body hit the ground and tumbled a few more feet. Riku let out half a groan, but his lungs protested even that. He felt as though he had been through a cheese grater. His skin was burning and he there were parts of his body that felt as though he'd been stabbed by burning knives. The back of his head throbbed as he tried sitting up. He blinked his eyes several times, but the tiny lights blocking his vision refused to completely leave. Squinting, he looked around, trying to figure out why he was still alive.

Behind him, he could barely make out a gray and purple form. As the messy auburn hair met his vision, he realized it was Melody. She lay on her side, back to him. He could make out tears in her clothes, but what worried him more was that through his hazy vision he couldn't see if she was breathing.

If he had the energy to spare he would have rolled his eyes. ' _I knew she was trouble…'_ he thought and forced himself to scoot over. "Melody…?" He mumbled through his labored breaths, but she didn't respond. He leaned over her shoulder and put a hand a few inches above her nose and mouth. Tension he didn't realize he was carrying drained from him and his body felt looser. Soft, warm breaths had met his skin and he dropped his hand onto her shoulder in relief. He looked around, still squinting as the lights were slowly fading from the corners of his vision.

The ground around them, in a perfect circle, was totally destroyed. The stone was now completely torn up and blackened from the heat of the strange attack. Where they had stood was the only part that was still somewhat intact. But even there, several holes had been drilled into the ground. What had protected them? They should have been torn to pieces.

' _Did Mickey do something…?'_ The boy thought, his eyes moving up to where Mickey had last been. The mouse was still there, and looked just as surprised that they were more or less ok. Riku looked past Mickey, just barely making out the cloaked man. He scowled and summoned his keyblade back to his hand, digging it into the dirt and hauling himself up.

Mickey realized Riku's gaze had moved to the man behind him and turned as well. His eyes hardened immediately as they landed on the man. However, he was not moving. He was simply standing there, watching as they moved. He did at least have the decency to seem surprised.

"Interesting. So, it seems that little girl is just as meddlesome as you two." He said. Riku narrowed his eyes, feeling strength already returning to his legs. He stood up straighter and pulled his keyblade out of the ground, raising it into his starting stance. His arms shook though, barely having the strength to hold them up, let alone the weight of a weapon.

Mickey's keyblade swung to the side in that moment though, forcing Riku to pause. "Were you… _testing_ them just now?" Mickey asked, anger evident as his free hand curled into a fist. The man's smirk returned and a dark chuckle passed his lips.

"And what if I was? You are in no position to retaliate." He reasoned. "Your precious friends are too injured to defend themselves. Will you really risk their safety, just to land an attack?" He asked in a tone that said he already knew the answer.

Riku let out a growl and tried to force himself forward, but his body wasn't ready for such movements and he stumbled, barely catching himself from falling. He narrowed his eyes, focusing his hazy vision, but he still couldn't make out the man's face.

The man turned to the side, still smirking, when something raced past his face, missing him by centimeters. His eyes widened, and he turned back, as did Mickey and Riku.

Melody had only risen to a kneeling position, but her bow was out in front of her and her shaky hand was already reaching for another arrow. Her breathing was labored, and one of her eyes was closed, blood dripping from under her bangs over it. "Don't talk…don't talk as though we're a burden to one another." She said as she struggled to breath properly.

The man seemed angered by the girl and raised a hand to his forehead. "Foolish girl. I'd imagine that arrow wouldn't have missed if you could see properly." He lowered his hand and took a step back. "It appears I must concede today." He raised an arm, palm facing forward and tearing open a dark portal. As the man backed into it, Mickey tensed.

He glanced back over his shoulder to Riku. "You two stay together. I'm goin' to try and follow him." Riku's eyes widened and he forced his legs to carry him over to his small friend.

"You can't just jump into a dark portal _alone."_ Riku argued. Before he could continue, Mickey cut him off.

"You both need to recover, and the dark portal won't last that long." Mickey argued right back. "I promise, I won't try to fight him again. But I might be able to find their base of operations or _something_ about them. We need to learn more if we want to protect Sora while he's sleeping."

Riku frowned. He knew Mickey was right, and he really did want to help Sora. But that didn't mean he needed to like this plan. With a groan he nodded. Mickey gave him a grateful smile. "I'll meet you back at the Academy in three days."

"Right…be careful…" Riku trailed off as Mickey ran for the dark portal, which was already half way closed. The tiny king seemed to make it just in time and as he disappeared, so too did the portal.

"Riku…?" A soft voice called from behind and Riku's hard gaze only glanced over his shoulder to the confused girl behind him. She had dropped her bow and returned to the ground, where she was still breathing heavily and looking around cautiously. She must have been half blinded by the light, just as he had. The silver haired boy sighed. They really couldn't have all gone together. _'We would have only slowed Mickey down…'_ Riku thought bitterly, turning to go help Melody.

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Riku stood on one of the highest roofs that had surprisingly not collapsed over the years. He looked down with bored cyan eyes at the light peeking through the buildings from a fire that Leon and his friends had made a little over a block away. It had only been about an hour since they had parted with Mickey, and Riku could still feel the guilt eating away at him. He should have gone with his friend. Who knows where that portal could have taken him. He felt like he'd abandon the King.

"Riku? Are you ok?" Melody asked from a few feet away. She was leaning against the side of a chimney stack, her hands gently rubbing the feathery fur of her odd little wind spirit. The creature's once vibrant colors were dulled extremely, to the point of almost seeming like they were shades of gray. Next to her, sitting on the roof, her journal was opened to a once blank page, where writing was currently appearing line by line. She still had some dirt on her cheek, but her clothes had mended themselves already. She seemed tired, but at least not in pain any longer.

Riku hummed and turned, leaning his cheek on his hand as he looked back out on the town. "What's wrong with the furball?"

"Wind spirit." Melody automatically replied. "He's just drained. That protective magic he used requires a lot of energy, which is something most wind spirit kits don't have."

Riku glanced back at the two, his eyes running over the sleeping cat-like creature that Melody insisted was a wind spirit. He may actually be starting to believe that now. He had been shocked to find out that powerful barrier that had ultimately saved their lives had come from the creature. Apparently, the basic element spirits are some of the more powerful beings, once fully grown. Perhaps Valifor wasn't quite as useless as he had originally thought.

"It doesn't look like he's going to wake up anytime soon." Her eyes moved from the little slumbering spirit to Riku. "You know we couldn't have followed him this time, right?" She said, her voice serious. Riku sighed again, choosing to go back to ignoring her. Melody let out a frustrated groan. "Why are boys so stubborn?" She grumbled.

"Look who's talking." Riku replied in a bored tone. Melody felt a tick in her eye as she looked over at the boy leaning on the edge of the roof. Her eyes softened as she took in his distant gaze and slight frown. He seemed lonely. Melody giggled once before gently moving her wind spirit back into her hood. He grunted and shifted against her back once he was deposited, but didn't show any protest. She grabbed her journal before standing and walking over, leaning against the ledge next to him.

"Let's go do a job." She said with renewed energy. Riku's eyes widened and he looked at her.

"What? No way. We're supposed to be waiting for Mickey." He insisted, his voice hard.

"For _three_ days? I don't think so." Melody said and looked over the newest writing in her journal. "I promise we'll be back within the three-day time frame. But Mickey told you to stick with me, and _I_ have work to do."

Riku narrowed his eyes on her. "Then wait until Mickey gets back."

"Come on! It could be fun!"

"No way."

"We'll be exploring!"

"Nu-uh."

"You'll experience new things!"

"We're staying."

"Think of it as training?"

"No."

"Uhg!" Melody growled and rubbed the side of her head in frustration. "We're not just gonna sit around here!" She counted backwards from ten slowly and took a deep breath, though she was obviously still ticked off. Riku was careful to keep his face neutral, but he had to admit- seeing her all angry and worked up was really amusing.

"Look. One of the jobs I've been working on is actually something _Sora_ should be handling, since he's the keyblade wielder, which is checking on the princesses that were kidnapped a few weeks ago. Their hearts went through a great deal of stress in those few days, and they also were dragged into another world. It's possible they attracted the attention of heartless or other dark beings when that happened. I need to meet with them, and inspect their immediate surroundings to make sure nothing followed them home." Melody explained as calmly as she could, still eyeing Riku's profile. "I only have two left. We can go check on one, and then come back. It shouldn't take more than a day at most."

Riku frowned. If it was something Sora needed to be doing, that meant it was his responsibility now. He promised he would do what he had to, to protect Sora and make sure he wasn't disturbed until his memory was repaired. And if it only took a day…

"…Fine." He said, finally looking back to Melody. "We can go, BUT- we're back here in less than three days- got it?" Melody grinned and nodded.

"Yes, sir! I promise I will have you back at the Old Academy before the sun sets in three days! Oh, that means I can fit one other thing into our travel schedule then!" She said, a bit too loudly.

"Who's there?!" The familiar voice of Leon called out and a shadow danced around the top of a nearby building. Riku and Melody ducked down quickly, hiding in the shadow of the ledge.

"And I promise not to be so loud when we get back." Melody whispered with a nervous smile, while Riku glared at her.

"Like that'll ever happen…" He said under his breath.

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 **And with that we are off to the next world. This was my first time writing a battle scene- I think it turned out pretty well! I may have to edit this at a later date- I feel like I rushed our villain off.**

 **Coming up next we'll have a brief discovery in the Lanes Between and then a familiar world from a very different perspective.**

 **As always, please review or comment! I love seeing them. ^_^**

 **Thank you all for the support and see you soon!**


	7. Lanes Between: Loyalty

**Looking at another quality during our trip through the Lanes Between! As always, feel free to leave a review and share your thoughts!**

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 **Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is not mine.**

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Riku frowned as he followed Melody once again through the twists and turns of the Lanes Between. This time though, they were one person short and he found it hard to enjoy the sights of the infinite worlds passing by. He glanced over his shoulder, back towards Hollow Bastion, or at least where he thought it was. The winds of space had calmed since their trip to the recovering world, but it still swirled around in odd patterns, twisting and distorting the worlds and paths.

"Mickey will be ok. From what I've heard, he's way stronger than both of us combined." Melody suddenly said, drawing Riku's attention. Riku's eyes widened imperceptibly and his steps slowed a little. Melody glanced over her shoulder at him, holding back a laugh. "So I was right, you _are_ worried about him."

Riku thought about it a moment, before he gave her a half grin. "No, the Organization's the one who should be worried. Mickey's unstoppable once he gets that look in his eye." He said confidently. "It just feels wrong letting him track those guys on his own."

Melody did laugh this time, making Riku frown. "What's so funny?" He asked, crossing his arms. The girl shook her head and faced forward again.

"You're so loyal. It's kind of cute!" She said, grinning as she turned her hazel gaze to the passing worlds while leading the way to their next destination.

The silver haired boy felt his face turn several shades of red. "Whoa, I am _not_ cute!" He said in a desperate attempt to sound threatening. However, it came out more as a protest than a statement or threat, making Melody laugh more. Riku felt a tick in his right eye as he watched her shoulders shake with ill-contained giggles. ' _This brat…'_ He thought with a low growl. "Listen to what I'm saying!" He tried.

Unfortunately, the girl he was stuck with seemed content not to acknowledge his protests. After several long moments of trying to convince her he just owed Mickey for everything the mouse had done for him, he sighed in irritation and looked away from her. "This is so annoying…" He said, more to himself than her.

After a long moment of quiet walking, Melody broke the silence. "It's not a bad thing. Being loyal." She said, her steps slowing to a stop as she spoke. "Loyalty like yours- it doesn't come from fear, or money, or power." The girl continued, as though she were puzzling something out. "No. The loyalty you feel towards the King comes from respect…or maybe understanding. It's strong and unbreaking." She finally turned, smiling warmly at him. "That kind of friendship and loyalty is hard to come by- be sure to always hold onto it!"

Cyan eyes widened in surprise, and any grumblings from the boy died out. Riku wasn't sure what he could say to that. Heck, he still couldn't believe she'd said it. He couldn't be that easy to read…could he? After so many years with Sora, maybe something had rubbed off on him after all…

Riku thought a moment, his mouth opening and closing twice before he was able to find the right words. "What is it that makes you say that? Neither of us have told you anything about how we met." He finally said. Melody tilted her head to the side, looking up in thought. Then she crossed her arms and closed her eyes. Riku watched her fidget under his gaze, wondering how she could be so direct in her assumptions of him, but be at such a loss when it came to herself.

Finally, he sighed and took the two steps to close the distance between them. He lifted his hand and slowly patted her head twice, getting her attention. Her hazel gaze met his, a mix of curiosity and confusion. "Try not to hurt yourself. It isn't worth that much thought." Riku said in an awkward attempt to smooth over the odd moment. "Didn't you say you had to get something from this world we're headed to? Let's hurry and get it, so we can head back to Hollow Bastion."

Melody gave him a grateful smile and nodded. With the small encouragement she turned back around and began down the shinning paths of the Lanes Between, weaving through the stars and worlds dancing around them.

"Maybe one day, I can earn some of that loyalty too…" Melody whispered softly. Riku, who was only three steps behind her tilted his head towards her.

"Sorry, what was that?"

Melody shook her head quickly. "It's nothing! Just talking to myself." Suddenly she halted, grinning as a small world shimmered into sight only a few feet from her. "There it is!" She said, jogging up to it.

Riku walked up to where she now stood and turned his eyes from her to the world, surprised when a familiar skull island came into view and a large, barely visible, clocktower on the opposite side. "Neverland? What could you need in a place like _that?_ " He asked, thinking back to everything he'd seen while there not long ago. He had only lingered on Skull Rock a few moments when he had arrived, and then all he'd seen was the pirate's "treasure" aboard the Jolly Roger. But gold and jewels didn't seem like the type of thing to interest Melody.

Melody shook her head and took a few steps around it, looking at other parts of the world. Carefully, she pointed to a small island just off the main one, opposite of the skull-shaped, pirate rock. What must have been a very large tree could barely be made out right in the middle of the tiny bit of land. "Neverland is technically the name of the big island, and obviously the most well-known. We're going to this one- Pixie Hollow."

' _Pixie…'_ "You mean fairies?" He replied, with a bored look now in place. "Like I said, what could you need in a place like _that?_ "

"Pixie Dust, naturally." Melody replied as though it were obvious. "I pick some up every year for Witch Thera."

The boy rolled his eyes. "Of course you do." He glanced back at the world. ' _I agreed to let Mickey go look for the Organization on his own, so I could come with her to get dust?'_ He thought, holding in a disappointed sigh.

Melody reached her hand towards the world, the Celestial Witch's insignia on the back of her glove glowing softly. Just as she began to open a doorway she paused, her eyes lighting up. "Hey, why don't we hold hands this time?"

Riku raised an eyebrow while looking between her and the hand she was now extending to him. "Why would I do that?"

"Well…last time we got separated. If we held hands, that won't happen again." She said, still smiling and waiting. Riku shook his head twice.

"No way." He flatly declined, looking away from her.

"Aw, come on! If we get separated here, we could be in trouble! It's a big world." Melody said with a pout, her hand lowering a few inches.

" _I'm_ not the one opening the doorway. We'll be fine." Riku argued quickly. He crossed his arms for good measure, ignoring her offered hand. Melody's smile dimmed a little, but she just nodded and lowered her hand.

"Alright… Be sure to stay close then and also…" She trailed off and appeared to be thinking for a few seconds. She looked back at the world, the insignia on her glove intensifying and engulfing her hand. "Just keep an open mind while we're here."

Riku tilted his head in confusion but nodded wasn't interested in a repeat of Hollow Bastion, and for the time being, she had proven to be trustworthy. What she meant by keeping an open mind, he wasn't too sure though… He stepped up next to her as the door opened, bathing them in warm tendrils of green and yellow and white magic.

"Let's go!" Melody said firmly just before she leapt from the roads of the Lanes Between through the door. And just as she had asked, Riku followed only three steps behind her.

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 **Quick shout-out to Chirithy564,** **Amalia Ignisa, and Ariana109213; thank you so much the reviews! I'm so happy to see someone enjoys my stories, when I once thought no one would give them the time of day. I am truly grateful!**

 **So we're off to Pixie Hollow! I know, I know, not the first place you would think of for a Kingdom Hearts adventure. But I was watching the first Tinker Belle movie a while ago and suddenly, an image of a fairy Riku popped into my head and I decided it _must_ be added. ****Stay tuned!**

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 **Thank you all!**


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